‘The Young and the Restless’: Why Was Tyler Michaelson Really Written Off the Soap?
Remember Tyler Michaelson on The Young and the Restless? He was a pretty notable character on the soap opera in the early-to-mid 2000s, portrayed by Redaric Williams. Promoting his new comedy series, Williams talked about his character, why Tyler was written off, and if he’d come back to the show.
Tyler Michaelson on ‘The Young and the Restless’
Michaelson was first introduced on the show in 2012. Williams originated the character and stayed in the role until he was written out in 2014, almost two years after his debut.
The character was first introduced as the younger brother of Leslie Michaelson (Angell Conwell), the girlfriend of Neil Winters. He is seen as a potential interloper in the relationship of Neil’s daughter Lily and her husband Cane. However, nothing really happens between the two. Tyler’s primary storyline is when he and Leslie’s past is revealed. Their father was accused of killing their mother and they changed their names and moved away. Come to find out, he was actually innocent of the crime.
Tyler is also romantically involved with Abby Newman and Mariah Copeland is his ex-girlfriend.
Here’s what Redaric Williams says about the character’s exit
In a recent interview with SoapCentral.com, Williams discussed his new series, Pump, which airs on UrbanFlixTV. He was also asked about his time on The Young and the Restless, in which he talked more about leaving the show and what he thinks happened to Tyler.
When asked about Tyler’s exit and how he “just kind of disappeared,” Williams joked, “He threw a ninja bomb down on the ground and — poof! — he was gone.”
The actor says he didn’t have much inside information about why he was written off. The real reason why the character was axed is not known. “A lot of the fans of the show think that we know more than we do, but a lot of times, we find out stuff as they find out,” Williams explained. “But to my knowledge of what was going on behind the scenes, and I don’t know what the reasoning was, but a lot of new writers were brought on, a new head writer and some new staff writers, so the writing crew was switched up. There was a regime change in the writing arena, and the writers that created my character, they pulled up their anchors and went elsewhere, so the new writers that came in, they weren’t really invested, I think, at all in my character. And it was not a knock or anything, it’s just that they had their own thing going on.”
Would the actor return to Genoa City?
Williams told the publication that he’s thought about what Tyler could have been doing in the years in which the character has been gone. “He was someone who was very ambitious. When you look at where he comes from and where he was going, he just seemed like he was becoming more and more well-versed and more and more polished. He went from being a graffiti artist to being the artistic head of Jabot,” he said in part. “So, I see him being a worldly person and traveling around, being in different countries and developing his skills to an even higher level. I see him as a bit of a globetrotter, for sure.”
The actor also said that he would be down to return to the show and the genre in general. “Yeah, I would never be opposed to that,” he said. “It’s an arena that I love. Daytime television is just a gem. It’s great to work in, it’s great to be a part of, and like I said, the fan base is wonderful, just all of it. I would never shy away from any opportunity to go back.”
The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS.
