Michael Graziadei Reveals Which Y&R Co-Star Convinced Him to Return
After ten years away from THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS, fan favorite Michael Graziadei brought his alter ego, Daniel Romalotti Jr., home to Genoa City on Nov. 21. And as the Daytime Emmy nominee confessed on the Dishing With Digest podcast, it’s all thanks to a question raised by his friend and co-star Bryton James (Devon)! “Bryton is the major reason for me coming back,” he revealed.
Back in June, James and Christel Khalil (Lily) visited Graziadei at his home to spend some time with the actor’s twins, Arlo and Bear. “He was just sitting there and said, ‘Hey, you should come back to the show, man. Would you ever come back?’” Graziadei recounted. “I said, ‘I haven’t really given it any thought. I just figured if they wanted me to come back, they would ask.’ He was like, ‘I’m going to go talk to some people.’”
Not long after, Graziadei shared, he and his manager received phone calls from the soap’s executives to gauge his interest. “I said, ‘You figure out what works for you guys and present it to me. If it works for me, yeah, I’m going to consider it.’ Why wouldn’t I?” he shared. “I wouldn’t be sitting here having this conversation with you guys if it wasn’t for Bryton. So, I guess I owe him one. I probably owe him 10%.”
Since exiting Y&R in January 2013, Graziadei has kept plenty busy with supporting roles on THE LOTTERY, GOOD GIRLS REVOLT, TRUE DETECTIVE, THE LINCOLN LAWYER, as well as a slew of television guest spots. In 2016, he made a brief appearance on the soap when Daniel’s sister, Summer, married Luca, but his return to Y&R this time around is for a longer period of time. “When the opportunity arose to come back here, it was a no-brainer,” he admitted. “I know that and I’m familiar with that and I love the people here. I was honored and humbled and incredibly grateful that apparently, I created enough goodwill while I was here the last time to have them want me back.”
Graziadei added that now that he’s got twin toddlers at home, the steady work schedule of a daytime soap was “a huge factor” in him considering a comeback once James suggested it. “Our hours aren’t that bad here; For the most part, you’re home by dinner,” he explained. “I get to see them in the morning at least, and see them at night for dinner — it’s important to me. It’s something that I want to be present for and I want to experience. I miss them on days that I wake up and I have to be at the studio early. I miss them terribly. I miss their stupid little faces.”
It sounds like it was a win-win for everyone!
