Young and the Restless sees many of these actor exits are quite controversial. Adam Newman (Mark Grossman) debuted in 2008, originally known as Adam Wilson before the big Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) paternity reveal. A couple of Adam actor exits were controversial, none more so than Michael Muhney.
Before Muhney, Chris Engen played Adam from February 2008 to June 2009. Engen left abruptly after about a year. And the rumor mill exploded with speculation that the actor was uncomfortable with the storyline of Adam seducing another man. Engen vehemently denied that was why he left, but he did leave.
Michael Muhney’s Controversial Exit as Adam Newman: Feuds and Firings
Michael Muhney entered the role in June 2009 and absolutely nailed it for five years. He was a fan favorite as Adam and scored an Emmy nomination in 2013, which turned out to be the same year he was fired. He did not choose to exit; he was exited.
There were tabloid reports about alleged inappropriate backstage behavior towards a younger female co-star, a charge that Muhney has always passionately denied and the female co-star has never confirmed. The larger issue with his exit likely was his reported backstage feud with Eric Braeden, also known as the great Victor Newman.
After Muhney’s firing, a few months later, Braeden confirmed that Michael Muhney had begun a campaign to try and get him kicked off Young and the Restless. However, Braeden denied he had Muhney fired. Typically, such decisions are down to showrunner and producer discretion, not the discretion of another actor. But when you’ve been on the show a long time, you probably have some pull, though Braeden denies it.
Justin Hartley’s Departure: From Y&R to Primetime Stardom
Justin Hartley was recast into the role of Adam Newman in November 2014 and was beloved. He left in 2016 to pursue other projects, landing a role on the hugely successful, award-winning primetime series This Is Us. He played Adam for two years before moving on to great things.
Currently, he has another hit CBS show, Tracker. When these two exits occurred, the writers created an “Adam death” storyline and then revived him with a recast. The most recent recast, who continues in the role, is Mark Grossman.
Phyllis Summers Recast Drama: Gina Tognoni’s Firing and Michelle Stafford’s Return
Another controversial exit on Young and the Restless involved Gina Tognoni as Phyllis Summers (Gina Tognoni). Michelle Stafford originated the role of Phyllis in 1994, leaving after nearly two decades of scheming, romance. And Emmy-nominated performances. When she announced her departure in July 2013, fans were blindsided.
Her final episode aired in early August 2013, where Phyllis fell down some stairs and into a coma after a confrontation with Sharon Newman (Sharon Case). At the time, Michelle stated the exit was her choice, as she wanted to pursue other opportunities. Fans, however, wondered if then-executive producer Jill Farren Phelps might have been a factor. Michelle Stafford went on to land a prominent role on General Hospital as Nina Reeves.
Young and the Restless cast Gina Tognoni in 2014 when Phyllis awoke from her coma. Gina was a great actress. And many people loved the recast. Then, in 2019, seemingly out of nowhere, she was abruptly fired. And Michelle Stafford returned. There was a 10-episode gap between Gina and Michelle’s portrayals. Executive producer Anthony Morina and head writer Josh Griffith took credit for the firing and the swap, stating they were “restoring Y&R to its iconic sensibility” and aggressively pursued Michelle Stafford to bring her back.
Chance Chancellor Recasts: Donnie Boaz’s Shocking Firing and Connor Floyd’s Exit
Next, let’s discuss the controversial swap of Chance Chancellor (Conner Floyd) actors. After an eight-year absence from the screen, Donnie Boaz took on the role from November 2019 to February 2021. Boaz delivered 108 episodes of solid work and had great chemistry with Abby Newman‘s Melissa Ordway.
Then, in the midst of Chance and Abby’s surrogacy journey with Mariah Copeland (Camryn Grimes), Boaz was abruptly out, seemingly out of nowhere. He posted on Instagram just a couple of days before it happened that February 1st was his last air date. Fans were absolutely blindsided. And he revealed he only found out he had been cut on Christmas Eve.
Boaz stated, “I’d love to say this was my choice, that I’ve booked a big project and I’m leaving of my own accord, but that would not be the truth.” He also mentioned that other cast members were being cut due to COVID budget issues. Donnie Boaz later edited his post to make it less accusatory and inflammatory. And he initially said there would not be a Chance recast.
However, he was wrong. Some suggested his firing might have been related to his political beliefs, but Boaz never commented. And those remain rumors. Later that year, Connor Floyd was brought in as the recast Chance Conner Floyd in November 2021. He was killed off in August 2025. Connor Floyd left because he landed a significant role on Days of Our Lives.
Sasha Calle’s Departure as Lola Rosales: From Genoa City to Supergirl
Now, let’s talk about the exit of Lola Rosales. Sasha Calle played Lola on Young and the Restless from September 2018 to 2021. She had electric chemistry with Kyle Abbott‘s (Michael Mealor). Then, in February 2021, everything changed. And Lola was leaving Genoa City.
Sasha’s departure was for a great reason for the actress, even if it disappointed Y&R fans. She beat out over 425 other actresses to land the role of Supergirl in The Flash movie, becoming the first Latina actress to play the role. It also worked out well because, frankly, Young and the Restless was not writing compelling storylines for Lola at that point.
Summer Newman’s Double Departure: Hunter King and Allison Lanier’s Exits
Now, we’ll discuss two Summer Newman exits and why both actresses left. Hunter King was the second actress to play the aged-up Summer Newman on Young and the Restless. We’ll cover her exit and that of Allison Lanier. Fans loved Hunter King as Summer Newman. She played the role from 2012 to 2021, with a small gap in the middle. Hunter earned two Daytime Emmys for Outstanding Younger Actress in 2014 and 2015.
However, she had bigger ambitions than playing Summer on the soap. She took a short break to do a primetime series and then returned, but ultimately, Hunter King decided to make the complete leap away from soaps. She has remained busy with TV shows and movies since leaving the role of Summer Newman.
Then, in May 2022, Young and the Restless recast Summer with Allison Lanier, who earned a 2024 Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress. Allison played the role of Summer for three years. Abruptly, on April 30th, 2025, Allison announced on X that May 2nd would be her last episode. She stated she loved the journey and learned so much but felt it was time to grow in a different direction.
With Kyle Abbott moving on to Claire Grace Newman (Hayley Erin) and Chance marked for death, there wasn’t much front-burner material for Summer on Y&R. Some critics said her hasty exit storyline cheated Allison Lanier out of proper closure, but the exit was open-ended, leaving room for a return or a recast.
Richard Burgi’s Abrupt Firing as Ashland Locke: A COVID Protocol Controversy
Now, let’s discuss Richard Burgi’s exit as Ashland Locke. Richard Burgi is a stellar actor and was a great find for The Young and the Restless to play the twisted villain Ashland Locke. Richard Burgi joined Y&R in March 2021. And his character Ashland swept Victoria Newman (Amelia Heinle) off her feet, but let’s be real, he was bad to the bone.
Then, all of a sudden, in January 2022, Burgi was fired over what he claims was a misunderstanding of workplace policy. Over Christmas break in 2021, the Ashland actor visited family and tested positive for COVID. Burgi followed new CDC guidelines that recommended isolating for five days.
He then returned to work on the Y&R set, testing negative twice at the studio. The issue was that Y&R had a 10-day isolation policy, double the CDC guideline, which Burgi either wasn’t aware of or misunderstood. He states he misunderstood. So, Young and the Restless fired him abruptly for this protocol violation.
His wife lashed out online, implying that Y&R treated her husband unfairly. And Burgi insisted he inadvertently violated policy. Fans were quite divided on the firing. In the end, they recast the role of Ashland with Robert Newman before ultimately killing off the character.
