What Happened to Ryder on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS
Ryder on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS may look familiar to viewers who don’t remember the character but recognize his portrayer, Wilson Bethel, from his later work on primetime series like ALL RISE. The young actor joined the cast of Y&R in July 2009 and portrayed the villain on a recurring basis until his final appearance in 2011.
Ryder Callahan was first seen as Deacon Sharpe‘s partner in crime who got to know Kevin Fisher and it was revealed that they were half brothers, sharing Tom Fisher as a father. Kevin tried to get everyone in Genoa City to accept Ryder, but it was difficult because he was being blamed for things that his twin sister, Daisy Carter, was actually doing. Kevin’s wife, Jana Hawkes, didn’t trust Ryder or Daisy, and investigating the pair found out that they were involved in the death of a little boy named Max Potter. Also, she found a photo album that revealed that Sheila Carter was their mother!
But Jana was kidnapped and it turned out the real culprit was Sara Smythe, who wanted revenge for the death of her sister, Sheila. She also abducted Lauren Fenmore and had plastic surgery to resemble her so Sara could take over her life. Daisy happily went along with Sara’s schemes but Ryder didn’t like hurting people. Learning Sara planned to kill her captives, Ryder attacked Daisy so Lauren and Jana could escape. Ryder skipped town but returned a few weeks later to ask Kevin’s forgiveness. He refused, and when Lauren saw him, she freaked out and Ryder was arrested.
He seemed content in jail, but Jana felt bad for Ryder and bailed him out, setting him up with a room at the Genoa City Athletic Club. Although he was reluctant, she convinced him to go to bed with her which is where Kevin found them together. Kevin refused to pay for Ryder’s hotel room so he was forced to steal from other rooms and when the cops started to close in, he realized he would have to disappear. He asked Jana to go with him, and she initially agreed but then tried to convince him to go back and face the music. He refused, so they parted company and he left town.
Ryder resurfaced briefly seven months later when he confronted Jana to ask about his niece, Daisy’s baby that she’d given up for adoption. He wanted to make sure the child was safe, but Jana had nothing to tell him. What he didn’t realize was that Jana was working as a nanny for Billy and Victoria, and the little girl she was caring for, Lucy Abbott, was really Daisy’s daughter!
