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THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS

Joshua Morrow Opens up About Nick’s Love Life on Y&R (EXCLUSIVE)

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Nick is a handsome, wealthy and a seriously good guy on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS, so it’s a bit mystifying that he’s seen more heartache in his life than a doctor in a cardiac-care unit! Soaps In Depth spoke to Joshua Morrow to get his take on his alter ego’s love life.

Soaps In Depth: Given how many women Nick has broken up with over the years, he seems really unlucky in love! What do you think?
Joshua Morrow: “I think the writers get a twisted enjoyment out of seeing Nick lose and suffer! (Laughs.) It gives the character a fun element to play, which is always dealing with loss, and it’s kind of carved out who he is. He’s a very confident dude. He’s like, ‘If anything bad happens, I’m going to pick up the pieces and move on again!’ He likes to stand up and very passionately say, ‘I don’t need anyone! I’m going to be alone!’ But he absolutely cannot. He is kind of a serial relationship guy.”

In Depth: A lot of people suspected that Chelsea would end up with Adam, but it was a little surprising how quietly Nick and Chelsea broke up.
Morrow: “I thought it made a lot of sense. These two absolutely love each other, but Chelsea was robbed of this beautiful relationship that she had with Adam. Nick was there to pick up the pieces, but he always knew that Adam was the one. Whether he is the one for her forever, it’s up to them to decide, but they never got the full relationship experience. Nick was fighting hard to make it work, but he knew he couldn’t. There were a million signs that Nick saw. And in typical Nick fashion, he was like, ‘I’m going to ignore all that!’ But Nick realized the best thing was for him to let Chelsea and Connor be with Adam. I thought it was a very selfless thing for Nick to do. It hurt, and he didn’t want to do it, but he saw what Chelsea was going through. [So in the end,] it was simple. He loved her. He felt like he really wanted to help her. And this was the last act of doing that.”

Melissa Claire Egan Joshua Morrow
“Nick fought hard for Chelsea, but it was never going to work.”Howard Wise/jipstudios.com

In Depth: Sharon may be with Rey, but there are a lot of Shick fans hoping that her cancer will reunite her with Nick. Do you think it could happen?
Morrow: “I truly don’t know. But it would mean so much more to me as somebody who cares about the Nick/Sharon relationship if he was just there for her as a friend, if there wasn’t any motive other than ‘I love you, and I’m going to fight with you to get through this’ without any romantic thing. If the story turned into [a romance], I’d tell that story happily, though. But I do think that Nick likes what Rey does for Sharon. She is in the healthiest place mentally and emotionally that she has been in a really long time.”

In Depth: Rey does seem to be good for Sharon.
Morrow: “He gives her something not many men have given her lately. And Nick really likes Rey. They’re friends. It would seem like a really [horrible] thing to do if Nick swooped in while Sharon was battling cancer and kind of stole her from his buddy! But it’s a soap opera, and you never know what’s going to happen. Whether it’s now or a year from now or five years, Nick and Sharon will certainly be romantically linked again.”

In Depth: Nick actually seems to be in a good place with all his exes. However, he recently slept with Phyllis! What’s going on?
Morrow: “Nick and Phyllis are fun! Their back-and-forth has this flirty, electric, jabbing vibe to it. It’s unlike any relationship that Nick has ever had. Now, these two characters have hurt each other, obviously, but there is something that happens between them that I freaking love!”

Y&R Phyllis Nick
These kinds of sparks could mean someone’s gonna get burned!CBS

In Depth: You and Michelle Stafford (Phyllis) have off-the-charts chemistry!
Morrow: “I love working with Michelle. You never know what’s going to happen with her! She has a very improvisational way when she does this show. Michelle is one of my longest friends. We really have a great relationship.”

In Depth: That comes across on-screen.
Morrow: “There is a natural smiling in our scenes — even when the scene is sad. I think that’s kind of rare. Nick and Phyllis enjoy being around each other, even in the sad moments, and it comes across so clearly. It’s that kind of uniqueness of Nick and Phyllis that I enjoy playing.”

In Depth: Is there any part of you that would like Nick to find a new love interest, someone who might not be on the canvas right now?
Morrow: “I would love the chance! If it was somebody really good and fun, and the writers had a good story, then of course. You become an actor because you have this creative, gypsy-like mentality. You want to experience other people and tell other stories, and any chance you get to do that, it’s great. I remember when they brought Kelly Sullivan (ex-Sage) on. She’s tremendous. And they brought Jessica Collins (ex-Avery) on. Man, they were home-run hitters! The show has a through-line that they maintain with core characters — Sharon and Phyllis will always be the go-to ladies for Nick — and I don’t mind that. But there are times when you are like, ‘Yeah, let’s go have fun with someone else for a while!’”

For more from your favorite Y&R stars, keep reading the CBS edition of Soaps In Depth Magazine.

This story originally appeared in our print magazine

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