‘The Young and the Restless’ Actor Hunter King Is Starring in a Hallmark Mystery and a Royal Christmas Movie
The Young and the Restless fans were introduced to a new Summer Newman in 2022 when Hunter King exited the role. King played Summer for years, and fans loved her portrayal of the character. Since her departure, King has been busy, booking projects back to back. Upcoming projects of the Y&R alum include a Hallmark mystery and a royal Christmas movie.
Hunter King left ‘The Young and the Restless’ due to contract negotiation breakdowns
According to IMDb, Hunter King began playing her fan-favorite character on Y&R in 2012 as a teenager. The actor continued booking jobs in other shows and movies while still working on Y&R. In 2015, she landed a role in the show Life In Pieces playing Clementine. The role in the comedy series was initially a recurring one, but the actor was promoted to series regular during its second season.
This forced her to exit Y&R in 2016 to concentrate on the CBS comedy series fully. In 2018, news broke that King would return to Y&R as a contract cast member. When the actor returned, her character had become manipulative and even tried stealing her mother’s boyfriend.
She also didn’t care that her former fixation, Kyle Abbott, was dating Lola Rosales, as she wanted him all to herself. Kyle and Summer eventually ended up getting married, but Kyle went back to Lola and then back to Summer after realizing she was who he loved. Kyle and Summer left Genoa City when Summer landed a lucrative job in Italy as a handbag designer in 2021.
That year, King and her co-star Michael Mealor left the series after contract negotiations fell through, returning briefly from October 12 to 15. King made a few more appearances on December 24, 2021, and February 21, 2022, before being replaced by Allison Lanier, who made her debut in May.
King has a Hallmark Channel movie in the works
Hunter King has been busy since leaving Y&R. She is set to star in a Hallmark Channel movie titled Hidden Gems. She plays Addie, her sister’s maid of honor, in a destination wedding in Hawaii. According to the movie’s synopsis, King’s character, Addie, loses her family’s heirloom, her grandmother’s prized ring, while on a paddleboarding yoga session.
She refuses to accept the loss and hires a local dive instructor to help her search the ocean for the lost treasure. Jack, a lone wolf, immediately conflicts with Addie as she insists on coming with him on the search. Addie claims to be Scuba certified and informs him she dreamt of a career in Marine Science.
After some back and forth, Jack and Addie come to an agreement, and he becomes her own personal tour guide showing her the island’s hidden gems. Good Trouble star Beau Mirchoff stars alongside King as Jack. Hidden Gems marks King’s Hallmark debut.
Hunter King will also solve a murder on Hallmark
With her foot in the door with Hidden Gems, Hunter King might become a huge Hallmark Channel star. Aside from Hidden Gems, King is set to appear in yet another Hallmark Channel film titled Nikki & Nora: Sister Sleuths. The movie follows two fraternal twins forced back into each other’s lives when they inherit a detective agency.
Soon, they become involved in the agency and work toward solving its mysteries, including a complicated murder mystery. As they work toward solving the case, they soon realize their differences give them an edge. King plays Nikki and stars opposite The 100 star Rhiannon Fish who plays her onscreen sister Nora.
