Young And The Restless Characters Who Came Back To Life

Dorathy Gass

March 4, 2020

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Daytime television shows continually try to come up with interesting storylines to keep viewers tuned in daily. As a result, sometimes major characters will be given the ax to offer up a plot twist or storyline for an actor/actress that is leaving the show. With that said, when it comes to the land soaps, even a character passing on is not definitive. There have been many instances in the past where characters have disappeared, or have been thought to be gone for good, only to return. As a result, most Young and the Restless (Y&R) viewers understand that no one leaves daytime drama forever. Below are a few instances where Y&R characters have passed on but then come back to life.

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12. J.T. Hellstrom

One of the most interesting Y&R storylines in 2018 was the one that revolved around Nikki, Vicky, Phyllis, Sharon … and J.T. Nikki was at the helm of Hellstrom’s demise back then, when she knocked him over the head with a poker to defend Victoria as she was being attacked. The women would try and cover up Hellstrom’s “disappearance,” and while they thought he was a goner (for good), he ended up very much alive in 2019, just as they were being hauled off to prison.

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11. Cane Ashby

Cane had been known for telling his wife Lily many a lie over the years of their marriage, but faking his own shooting back in 2011 was one for the books. While she (thought) she saw him get shot right before her very eyes, in the end, it ended up being Cane’s twin Caleb, and Lily was kept in the dark for a little while until Ashby re-emerged onto the Genoa City scene.

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10. Skye Lockhart

While Skye was only on the show for a couple of years, she made quite the impact in Genoa City. She was linked to Adam Newman upon her arrival in 2008, and was thought to have passed away not once but twice during her tenure at the Y&R. The first time around, Adam helped her fake her own passing, while the second time, he was pinned for it. When all was said and done, Lockhart ended up falling into a volcano in late 2010, but as most Y&R fans know, this doesn’t necessarily mean she is gone for good!

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9. Sharon Newman

Speaking of, Sharon Newman tried to help Adam get off on charges around Skye’s demise back in 2010. She believed Lockhart was alive, and went on a search to find her. She did locate Skye; however, sadly, Lockhart would fall into a volcano before Sharon could take her back to Genoa City to clear Adam’s name. With that said, Sharon was then placed in jail for Skye’s passing (even though her fall was an accident), and she escaped from prison shortly after the fact. Sharon would embark on an over-the-top adventure, which landed her in a car accident, and when a search party found the vehicle (with another women’s body in it), everyone assumed it was Sharon. She’d turn up very much alive months later.

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8. Kelly Andrews

Kelly started off as a sweet character when she entered the soap in 2013, but things took a turn around 2015 when she was dating Jack and his former love Phyllis wound up back in town, fully recovered from her coma. Kelly and Victor concocted a plan to get back at Abbott, and faked her passing in March of that year. She’d wind up okay, and even kidnapped Jack; however, during an odd twist of events in St. Bart’s where she tried to drug and brainwash him, she ended up passing in May 2015.

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7. Phillip Chancellor III

The love child of Jill and Phillip Chancellor, Phillip III was a controversial character from the get-go. As he grew up, he appeared as an adult on the show who developed a drinking problem. After an office party, Phillip was driving drunk, got into an accident, and passed away — at least that is what Y&R viewers believed. As it turned out, Phillip’s accident was an attempt to fake his own death. He would end up moving to Australia where he lived as Lanley until he reappeared on the show years later. Phillip’s return was shrouded in mystery when he convinced Cane to parade around as him, and get close to his family.

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6. Sheila Carter

Sheila was one of the most volatile characters on any daytime soap. She caused nothing but pain, suffering, and disaster to everyone around her. While she liked to torture characters of both Y&R and Bold and the Beautiful, it did seem as if her favorite victim was Lauren Fenmore, who was led to believe that Sheila had passed away on more than one occasion – only to come back to life. Sheila passed away in a fire, swallowed a vial of pills, was impaled by a fireplace poker, attempted to take her own life more than once, and was supposedly crushed when a shelter caved in. With all that said, no matter what happens to this character, she always ends up okay. She’s got to be a cat with nine lives!

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5. Malcolm Winters

Malcolm Winters added an interesting and intriguing spin to the Winters family when he came to Genoa City to reconcile with his brother Neil. His character was known for making some bad choices, but also for having a heart of gold. During a location visit to Kenya, a bridge collapsed — when Malcolm went into the water to help someone else, the bridge fell right where Malcolm was swimming and he was never found. Three years after the fact, he returned to Genoa City quite upset that everyone just left him behind. The good news is that he did get over it, and the family was able to reconcile.

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4. Katherine Chancellor

A staple on Y&R since 1973, the character of Katherine Chancellor had thought to have passed multiple times, only to come back very much alive! Her first passing was an attempted to take her own life, with another involving a sanitarium fire. Then she jumped off a cruise ship, and it was presumed that she drowned. She was also thought to be involved in a car accident where her look-alike Marge passed, and everyone thought it was her. After a long recovery, she reappeared with Murphy. Sadly in 2013, actress Jeanne Cooper’s untimely passing after a prolonged illness resulted in Katherine’s passing, where Chancellor went to sleep while on vacation with her husband and didn’t wake up. It was a loss felt by not only her fellow cast-mates, but the fans as well.

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3. Cassie Newman

Sharon’s daughter Cassie made her first appearance on the show as a 5-year-old girl. She was simply the sweetest little girl, who became the center of Nick and Sharon’s world, as well as their son Noah. Her parents had more than a few scares over the years when it came to Cassie! She was once diagnosed with tuberculosis, but it was inactive and she was cured. Then she fell through the ice in a frozen pond and ended up in a coma for days until she made a recovery. At the age of 14, Cassie was in a car accident which caused a serious head injury. She left the hospital early to talk to Daniel, which lead to an infection, and eventually caused her demise. It was one of the saddest on-screen passing Y&R’s history. Many years later, Mariah, her unknown twin sister appeared posing as Cassie, having some believe she was alive – until the truth was revealed.

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2. Adam Newman

An ever-divisive character, Adam has a dynamic personality, which helps to make storylines in Genoa City that much more interesting. Plus, he’s had his fair share of “accidents” over the years, only to end up alive and well. His first was when he fell in a ravine trying to hide from his family, but survived. Then, after an explosion at the cabin, a body with Adam’s DNA was found, but it was later discovered that Adam faked his own demise. People thought he had passed on after a car accident with Billy, but he ended up okay. More recently, he returned to Genoa City after another cabin explosion (at the hands of Chloe). This guy is unbreakable!

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1. Victor Newman

Like father, like son? Victor has also been in a few close encounters but always ends up ok. Back in 1993, he was thought to have passed after a car accident (but ended up alive), and then again in 2008 in a shipwreck. Later in 2012 he was declared gone for good, but ended up okay … and the list goes on. More recently in 2019, Victor faked his demise in a ploy to teach Adam a lesson, as his son switched his medication on him. Some fans thought Newman had really passed, while others believed he would end up being ok, which was the case in the end.

Dorathy Gass

Dorathy Gass is an avid fan of daytime drama and has been watching Days of Our Lives, General Hospital, and Young and the Restless for over two decades now. As a full-time freelance writer, she gets to combine her love of soap operas and writing through her Fame 10 articles. Also a mother of two busy girls and a mommy blogger, she's been published multiple times over in Huffington Post Parents and Scary Mommy.