News
Former Y&R Star Victoria Rowell Suing CBS and Sony!
Photo Credit: HutchinsPhoto.com
Victoria Rowell is said to now be suing CBS and Sony according to a report Wednesday from Daytime Confidential. In her claim, Rowell alleges CBS and Sony rejected her re-employment after she spoke out about the lack of African-American diversity in front of the camera and behind-the-scenes on the soap opera. Rowell had played fan favorite Drucilla Winters, and has tried to return to the number one CBS Daytime drama series for quite some time, but that has never materialized.
The release on the lawsuit reads: “Former ‘Young and the Restless’ star Victoria Rowell is filing a complaint in federal court against CBS, Sony Pictures and other defendants claiming that she was denied re-employment on the highest rated daytime soap opera in the country in retaliation for her public and private complaints regarding the lack of diversity in front of and behind the camera on the show.
Rowell became the first African American female with a leading role on The Young and the Restless in 1990 when she brought to life the role of Drucilla Barber Winters. She reluctantly left the show in 2007 after facing years of racial discrimination that are described in the complaint. During her tenure she won eleven NAACP Image Awards and received two Daytime EMMY nominations.
Starting in 2010 and continuing to date, Rowell has sought to return to the show or to its sister soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful. Her attempts to re-join have been denied by those in charge of hiring at Sony and at Bell-Phillip Television Production Inc., with CBS’s CEO allegedly pulling their strings.
Rowell claims the defendants rejected her re-employment in retaliation for Rowell’s public advocacy to increase the presence of African-Americans in daytime soap operas in general and on The Young and the Restless in particular. The complaint alleges that defendants have rejected her even though African American women, who comprise a huge percentage of the viewership for The Young and the Restless and for daytime soap operas in general, have clamored for Rowell’s return and rejected all of the defendants’ efforts to replace her on the show over the years.
Washington, DC-based law firm Mehri & Skalet, PLLC, along with New York City-based counsel Valli Kane and Vagnini LLP and California-based law firm, Hadsell Stormer & Renick LLP, represent Rowell in this new case.”
What do you think about Rowell suing CBS and Sony? A smart move? A PR ploy? Do Y&R fans just want to see this talented actress back in Genoa City, no matter what? Weigh-in below!
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Josh Swickard Recalls Emotional Moment After His Final Scenes with Michael Easton, and Favorite ‘Chase’ Storyline
Josh Swickard (Harrison Chase, General Hospital) is the special guest on this week’s all-new episode of Soapy Hosted by Rebecca Budig and Greg Rikaart. The GH fan favorite and leading men opened up about his life pre and post GH, his marriage to actress and producer, Lauren Swickard, and some of his toughest and most memorable moments during his eight-plus years as officer Chase of the PCPD.
One of the most heartbreaking moments came when Josh had to say farewell to his on-screen brother Finn played by soap veteran, Michael Easton. It was back on the Thursday, June 27, 2024 episode of General Hospital.
In it, Chase drives Finn to a rehab facility and the two brothers share a heartfelt talk in the car. Finn thanks Chase for allowing him to say goodbye to his daughter, Violet (Jophielle Love). Chase promises to take good care of her. However, Chase warns Finn to not to take any shortcuts on his way to sobriety and to always think of Violet’s wellbeing. It is apparent, the brothers don’t want to say goodbye, but on the count of three, Finn leaves Chase’s car and walks through the door of the rehab facility, while Chase in tears beats the steering wheel before drives away.
Photo: ABC
MISSING HIS TV BROTHER
Josh spoke to the “Soapy” podcast hosts about it and recalled, “In our last scenes together, and it was like his last day. Michael was like, ‘It’s okay.’ And I was like, ‘No, it’s not.’ I was supposed to be crying in the scene, I think. I was like a little glassy-eyed, a little glazed over. And then they were like, “And cut.” I was like, “Great.” I just like went behind the car and wept.”
Speaking of his professional and personal relationship with Easton, Josh expressed, “Michael is an awesome guy. He’s such a sweetheart. We’ve done fan events together in New York and he would show me things, like, ‘This where I used to live …’ He’s like an older brother to me.”
Not only did Josh lose his on-screen brother, but he also lost his on-screen father, Gregory, played by Gregory Harrison, when he was killed-off the show after the character battled ALS. “I think I was more just mourning friends that play family on a show, but a show that goes year after year, year round, and so they become family,” explained Swickard. “So, that part’s been hard for me of just losing friends that while, yes, you get to see each other, you get to call each other, it’s different (when they leave).”
Photo: JPI
CHASE IN A COMA IS FAVORITE OF JOSH’S
When asked, what has been his favorite storyline during his run on GH thus far, Josh took it back to when Chase became became critically ill after being poisoned by a toxic from Peter August (Wes Ramsey) meant for Finn. Eventually, Finn had to rescue his brother with the antidote for the toxin. That story played out from April to June 2021.
Josh explained, “Where I was in a coma and I was seizing and coughing and I had no blocking for like four months! It was great! It was a storyline where I was about to die and I had to say goodbye to a lot of lovely people and it was so exhausting. You get in the car and you feel like you got hit by a train every day because your body doesn’t fully know what acting is, apparently. I remember multiple days being like, ‘Oh, this is why I signed up for this.'”
Swickard also answered if there were moments in the storyline if he felt Chase was not going to survive. The GH star answered, “There were moments that I wondered. However, I think they were pretty upfront with me. They were like, ‘This isn’t what’s going to happen.'”
Check out the full conversation with Josh on the ‘Soapy’ podcast via the comment section below.
Now let us know, what has been your favorite scenes of Josh as Chase on General Hospital during his run? Do you miss the relationship between Chase and his brother, Finn? Let us know via the comment section below.
More casting news from Days of Our Lives, and for now, the soap opera seems to be breaking their new additions to Salem via their Instagram account. Now comes word and picture on August 24, that General Hospital and The Young and the Restless alum Brytni Sarpy has joined DAYS!
The Peacock soap opera’s Instagram account, showed a photo of Sarpy standing in front of her dressing room in the hallways of Days of Our Lives’ studios. The caption read, “Someone new is checking into Salem… Welcome Brytni Sarpy to the Days of our Lives family! Stay tuned.”
The casting of Sarpy comes on the heels of the announcement of Sydney Malakeh coming to the show in September, and earlier this year General Hospital favorite, Sofia Mattsson (ex-Sasha Gilmore, GH) joining the show in a mystery role when she began taping back around the end of March of this year. Now Sarpy is the “mystery role” category too!
In addition, the Days of Our Lives social team dropped a video ditty of the cast spoofing Love Island, where Sarpy appears as the new “bombshell” of the villa. Other cast members such as Rob Scott Wilson (Alex), Abigail Klein (Abigail), Casey Moss (JJ), Sal Stowers (Lani), Paul Telfer (Xander) and Linsey Godfrey (Sarah) pop-up in it too, among others.
Photo: JPI
SOAP HOPPING
Soap fans first met Sarpy when she played Valerie Spencer, the niece of Luke (Anthony Geary) and Bobbie Spencer (Jackie Zeman) on General Hospital back in 2015. She made her final appearance on the series back in 2019 to join the cast of The Young and the Restless in the role of Elena Dawson.
Elena was introduced as a love interest for Devon Winters (Bryton James). She later cheated on him with his cousin Nate Hastings (Sean Dominic). Elena began to be back-burned by 2023 with Sarpy’s last on-screen appearance in Genoa City in November of 2024.
Due to Days of Our Lives nearly year in advance tape schedule, viewers will have to wait till sometime in the early summer of 2027 to see Brytni’s arrival in Salem.
So, happy to see Brytni Sarpy has landed another soap role? Now that she is at DAYS, who you think she might be playing and paired with? Put on your casting director hats and let us know via the comment section.
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News
‘The Bold and the Beautiful’s’ Jacqueline MacInnes Wood Delivers the ‘Power Performance of the Week’
Last week, The Bold and the Beautiful gave three-time Lead Actress Daytime Emmy winner, Jacqueline MacInnes Wood, the material to go for a fourth in 2027. In an emotional scenes, Wood showcased her sadness, feeling of betrayal and abandoned by her husband, Finn, to her good friend and co-worker, Carter Walton (Lawrence Saint-Victor).
But here’s the catch; Wood, as well as Saint-Victor, played the scenes completely drunk. First, Steffy drinks herself silly on the plane home from Monaco after finding out Finn’s (Tanner Novlan) mother, Sheila (Kimberlin Brown) who she has PTSD about with good reason, boarded the plane with him to Europe and kept it a secret. Steffy had already thrown her ring at her husband and storm trooped to the airport after seeing momma Carter in Monaco.
Later, Steffy somehow stumbles into the Forrester Creations CEO office, and suddenly Carter also shows up. He is also schnokereed from knocking back one after the other over Daphne (Murielle Hilaire) walking out on him.
Photo: JPI
Suddenly, Steffy opens up her heart to Carter, “I need to be safe, so it’s over. We’re over,” speaking about her marriage to Finn. She says, “I keep replaying this moment. There was this shift. I saw it. I asked him if he was OK. Then, I realized what he was looking at ….Sheila. She was right there. And my husband wasn’t going to protect me… he wasn’t going to be there for me.”
Steffy is full on in upset-mode, that in that moment she put her faith in Finn’s commitment to her, he didn’t come through with “actions”, and that his word meant nothing. Carter winds up sitting next to Steffy on the desk of the office, blindsided by each of their partners.
Suddenly, Steffy becomes hysterical, and lets out all of her rage and Carter takes her in his arms and says “I got you.” Then, in the pick-up of the next morning, it appeared as if Carter and Steffy had sex together and passed out.
When Steffy came to she freaked out. Realizing, there wer texts from Finn trying to reach her, she wasn’t home for her kids, and she panicked and had to get out of there. When Carter tried to talk to her, she couldn’t in that moment, feeling so guilt-ridden and ashamed for her betraying her marriage like this, when she truly loves Finn.
Photo: JPI
Once she gets back home as a disheveled mess, she runs into her mother, Taylor (Rebecca Budig), before Finn arrives and lays it on thick and begs for forgiveness. Trying to recover from her hangover, her night with Carter and what all went down, as Finn talks, everything is confusing for Steffy, as she cries. She wants to tell her husband what she did and confess. But will she?
By the end of last week, Carter is begging Steffy to keep her mouth shut about their booze-filled night together, but she cries that lying to her husband and it is eating her up. Carter tells Steffy the truth of their night together can never come out for so many reasons; least of all his relationship with her father, Ridge (Thorsten Kaye) and Daphne. Will Steffy eventually crumble and spill the beans or stay quiet? Stay tuned!
Throughout all the very soapy scenarios, we have to say, we enjoyed Wood’s performances as it showed a more vulnerable, letting her guard down from the often holier-than- thou Steffy Forrester. We also think its material taking out of context that would be just right for many Emmy voters next year. So with all that said, Michael Fairman TV gives the Power Performance of the Week to B&B’s Jacqueline MacInnes Wood.
So, do you agree with our pick as Jacqueline MacInnes Wood as the Power Performance of the Week? Did you think she delivered in the scenes from the time Steffy left her husband in Monaco, through the drunken binge with Carter, to back home and being confronted with Finn wanting her to take him back? Let us know in the comment section below.
‘General Hospital’s’ Josh Swickard Recalls Emotional Moment After His Final Scenes with Michael Easton, and Favorite ‘Chase’ Storyline
Brytni Sarpy Joins the Cast of ‘Days of Our Lives’
‘The Bold and the Beautiful’s’ Jacqueline MacInnes Wood Delivers the ‘Power Performance of the Week’
GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Is This the End for Brennan?
‘General Hospital’s’ Dominic Zamprogna Shares He Was ‘Happy to Hear’ of The Triangle Storyline Developing Between Dante/Elizabeth/Ric
‘Veronica & Julian’ Feature Starring ‘Days of Our Lives’ Alums Nadia Bjorlin and Kyler Pettis Releases Key Art and More (Exclusive)
John Oliver Recaps His ‘Days of Our Lives’ and ‘General Hospital’ Soap Opera Experience on ‘Last Week Tonight’
‘General Hospital’ Alum Bryan Craig Cast in ‘The Weapon’
Hayden Panettiere, ‘Guiding Light’ and ‘Nashville’ Alum, Dead at 36
GH and OLTL Alum Patrick J. Gibbons Reveals the Story Behind Writing Trina’s Song on ‘General Hospital’ (Exclusive)
‘General Hospital’s’ Josh Swickard Recalls Emotional Moment After His Final Scenes with Michael Easton, and Favorite ‘Chase’ Storyline
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‘Guiding Light’s’ Grant Aleksander Shares Heartfelt Remembrance of TV Daughter, Hayden Panettiere On What Would Have Been Her 37th Birthday
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Drucilla, er Victoria Rowell done lost her dang mind!!!!!!
This use to be worthwhile to debate …
Back in 2009 or 2010.
But it’s freakin’ 2015. Even us die-hard Victoria Rowell/Dru fans have moved on.
Well Victoria Rowell should of been back long long ago. Fans love her and miss her so much and Neil is got no real story we care about without Drucilla
OK…. “I’m done”
I’ve tried my fan base… for her character
Drucilla Dynasty will not cache her purse with Devon 2 billion
could have been a get
She is so unprofessional. I wouldn’t hire her back either. The woman is a loose cannon. She never has a kind word to say. Why would anyone want to work with someone like that? Now she’s suing them? She’s horrible. How about Michael Muhney sues? This is what’s wrong with the country. Sue when you don’t get your way. Waaaah waaaah waaaah. Don’t take any responsibility for your actions.
Exactly. If I bad-mouthed my boss and my employer-I don’t think they would be too keen on re-hiring me. It sounds desperate. I mean, is she broke?
OMG…YOU TOOK THE WORDS OUT OF MY MOUTH!!!! THANK YOU FOR VOICING AN HONEST OPINION…….
What action should she take responsibility for? Speaking out about the lack of diversity behind the camera? This is the United States of America isn’t it? Don’t we have the right to free speech?
If CBS/Sony do not agree with Victoria’s point of view they don’t have to follow her suggestions. However to deny her employment because of her point of view is not a smart thing to do. If they had allowed Victoria to work, it would have drawn far less attention to the issue of a lack of diversity that she has raised.
In light of the recent email scandal at Sony that resulted from hackers invading Sony’s computer system, I am inclined to believe there may be a diversity problem at CBS/Sony. Whatever the outcome of the lawsuit, CBS/Sony brought this trouble on themselves by mishandling this matter.
If indeed there is a reluctance on the part of CBS/Sony to become more inclusive of all persons when staffing behind the camera positions, then cheers to Victoria for having the courage to speak out on this issue at the risk of her own career opportunities. If Victoria’s cannon is loose, it needs to stay loose and keep on firing!!!!!!!!!!!
I can understand VR about fighting for diversity but its one sided…she only cares about one race and its black…what about the lack of American Indians and Japanese Americans in front of and behind the scenes…VR is also upset the soap wouldnt rehire her and she is using the race card for that too…if Y&R want to bring the character back or not they have the right to do so…should every soap rehire every actor that quit their soap just because they want their job back and cant get any other job…if the soap cant use the character you cant force them to bring one back unless they want to…i hope they recast!!!
Victoria is an advocate for diversity BEHIND-THE-CAMERA. I do not know if she has included American Indians or Asian Americans in her concerns or not. If there are concerns about CBS/Sony hiring American Indians or Asian Americans, they should raise the issue themselves. Victoria is an African-American. It is quite natural that she would raise the issue of African-Americans being hired behind the camera. In this country, African-Americans have ALWAYS had to fight for the end to discrimination and for opportunities in this country. That is an unfortunate part of our history as citizens of the USA. People in the USA from other ethnic backgrounds have never HAD to fight for opportunities they way African-Americans have had to fight. If that is considered “playing the race card” so be it. But it is definitely true.
American Indians and Asian Americans were not sold into slavery on an auction block, while being treated like cattle. American Indians and Asian Americans were not beaten into submission and made to work for nothing as slaves, while being denied the opportunity to learn to read and write (because it was against the law, so they learned in secret). American Indians and Asian Americans were not denied the right to assemble together to worship, for fear they might plan how to escape the chains of slavery. American Indians and Asian Americans did not have to build an underground railroad to escape slavery. American Indians and Asian Americans did not have to drink from water fountains marked “Colored”, step off the sidewalk to let a Caucasian American walk by, use an entrance to a public facility that was marked “Colored” as opposed to “White”, denied the courtesy of using a public restroom, sit on the back of a pubic transportation bus to allow Caucasian Americans have preference. American Indians and Asian Americans were not designated as three-fifths (3/5) of a human being. American Indians and Asian Americans were not strung up on trees and hung to death by Caucasian American lynch mobs. American Indians and Asian Americans were not beaten to death at the hands of Caucasian American men simply because of the color of their skin. American Indians and Asian Americans did not have skin torn off their flesh with high powered water hoses. American Indians and Asian Americans did not have to face dogs used to stop them from registering to vote. Now we have unarmed youth being shot down in the street for no reason.
Although I am aware that American Indians and Asian Americans have also had their challenges in this nation, I think they can handle whatever concerns they may have about discrimination hiring practices. We African-Americans have had and still have our hands full!
@ gmbenet…everything you just wrote? Race card.
Rebecca1:
Race card? So what? If you are offended by what I wrote, TOO BAD!!!!! I told the truth. If you think African-Americans are going to stop raising issues relevant to us because someone might accuse us of “playing the race card”, you will be sorely disappointed. We African-Americans have endured far worse that your attitude.
Yes. Everything I wrote was about race because that was and continues to be the issue!
Hollywood had gotten rich by promoting and maintaining a “certain image” of African-Americans. That is ENTIRELY about race. EVERY advancement African-Americans have made is because we have by necessity raised the issue of unfair practices involving race. It is a very ugly truth about this nation, but it is true. Therefore as long as the issue remains a promblem, the so-called “race card” will be played!
Rebecca1:
Speaking of “race card”, you haven’t seen me ” play the race card ” yet. When I “play the race card” I withholding my consumer spending dollars! My “race card” is GREEN! I use it for boycotting!
I doubt she’ll return now. She didn’t burn her bridges, she blew up her bridges. Boom!
yeah,
double sigh …. if only we had that luxury
the potential for her return would have been gangbusters….
the winters clan are the dullest
Stella…E-X-A-C-T-L-Y!!!!! A-n-d…I’m actually surprised that she S-T-I-L-L has a career left in the entertainment industry. Y-I-K-E-S!!!!!
YAWN.
Same song and dance. She wont be happy until she puts the final nail in her careers coffin.
“Hi welcome to Subway my name is Victoria how can I help You?”
Paper or plastic?
I think she needs to stop playing the “race” card. There are plenty of African-American actors on the show!!! Maybe if she would keep her mouth shut she would get more acting roles!!! She must be running low on cash to have to sue for $$
I thought the same thing. I don’t watch the show a lot-but I think they have a diverse set of actors/characters.
Diverse set of actors? You’re right, you really don’t watch the show a lot.
She should go take a job over at the EMPIRE. There are blacks in front and behind the camera if she is so concerned with color! Oh wait, they probably wouldnt want her either. Yeah, shes black but they are probably too smart to hire a trouble maker, black or white!
I question the information reported in this article. What I read regarding this matter from a separate source is that Victoria is raising the issue of diversity BEHIND THE CAMERA. It would be hard to argue a lack of diversity among the actors at Y&R. The are quite diverse and have been for some time.
It is very important to pay attention to details in matters such as this one because it is easy for information to become misconstrued.
Plenty of African-American actors on the show? I’m counting 3 or 4, out of a cast of nearly 40. Are you watching the same show?
Yes I would love to see Dracilla Winters back Victoria is a great actress and would be an asset to either show.
I am not Africian American but I do like to see different denominations acting together, they should get their act together and realize that is life as we know it.
Whaaaat?! Too bad because I so miss Dru and think the character is sorely needed. The Winters clan haven’t been the same without her. That said, Victoria Rowell is her own worst enemy.
ooopsie!
Victoria Rowell has cooked her goose..
Her soap’ acting career with ‘any’ soap is now over.
Anytime so goes for a role on any show on tv nobody will touch her after suing CBS, it is the way it is.. She is now taboo ..
There is no doubt– she will lose her lawsuit..
There were other African Americans on Y&R at the time that had no problem, only her..
Perhaps she will be or is being counter sued for slander and a variety of whatevers.. ohhh ohhh not good for her..
CBS attorneys deal with stuff like this daily lol they are very good at what they do..
I wish her luck.. and no one should believe that Drucilla will ever return to Y&R, not gonna happen, not now for sure even as a recast because the character is soiled so to say..
Exactly, and after suing a major network-I doubt that ABC or NBC (or anyone, for that matter) would be too excited to hire her..
Has to be running out of money. Next, we’ll hear how she declared bankruptcy and she’ll blame it on her attorney’s fees for this lawsuit!
Actually other African Americans there did have problems. She was the one who spoke for the group.
Again the issue is not about the hiring of actors, but the hiring of behind the scenes personnel. I do not trust the information being reported here because it conflicts with information from another source.
Maybe if she hadn’t knocked Y&R in Twitter rants and elsewhere all these years they would’ve taken her back. Her mouth was her downfall.
Victoria Rowell is done in show business by her own actions..
Suing CBS over discrimination no other media enterprise would touch her with a 10′ pole. She would be an unstable liability…
Poor, woman will end up working at walmart .. no way will she win this lawsuit, never happen..
I’m sure she knows a lot about the BTS at Y&R, CBS, Sony, and the Bells’ company. I’ve read a lot about racist insensitivity by some of the cast, like Melody Thomas-Scott running around in an Afro wig mocking VR. There’s a lot of bad blood here, so get ready for a lot of ugly stuff coming out in the trial.
Now she’s suing because they won’t hire her? Good grief. This is ridiculous. It’s not like they have the role of Drucilla on the show and recast. it She might have a valid point then, but Drucilla isn’t on, isn’t really mentioned. It’s a shame, because I enjoyed Victoria on Diagnosis Murder and might have enjoyed her on Y&R (was not watching when she was on), but I think she has alienated a lot of people and despite her talent and fanbase, she’s not worth the drama behind the scenes.
Maybe she’ll end up on EMPIRE…….Cookie can eat that MESS up!
Well…the never ending story. Let me first say…I am not judging this woman. She provided many years of entertainment, and personally, I would love to have Drucilla back on the show. The Winters clan has never been the same without her, and Sharon needs the kick ass Dru in her corner defending her, and putting all the hypoctrite haters in their place. But now to real life. It has been 8 years. Suing now?? It is a documented fact that people rarely sue on principle, or to help others, or to foster change or improvement. They sue for cold hard cash. When it comes right down to it, thats what this is. It has nothing to do with diversity. Rowell chose to leave the show. Now I dont know, obviously, what sort of discrimination she faced, and discrimination of any kind is a terrible and destructive thing. Her career hasnt really been on an upward trajectory since she left, so her bank account is probably sorely depleted. But lawsuits cost money, and take time, and very seldom reward the lottle guy, especially when battling large corporations. Ms. Rowell is a dynamoc and talented dancer, performer, and creative artist. It is a shame she doesnt instead channel her energies into those avenues. She could work with others, especially those of diverse backgrounds, to form dance troupes, or production companies. She could go to Tyler Perry. He has no problem employing people on very successful television shows and movies. Instead, she chooses to bang her head into a brick wall and keeps trying to fight this fight that she very clearly wont win. The fact that the majority of the production staff of Y and R does not prove discrimination. Unless she can prove that there are many black people who applied for.current jobs, and were denied those jobs solely on the basis of skin colour, then she might have the beginnings of a case. The onus is.completely on her, as she is the one making very charged, bracing accusations against many people in power. If she could or would step off her soap box, pardon the pun, and humble herself, and if the powers that be would meet her halfway, and she could come back as Dru, the show would see a guaranteed surge in the ratings. There would be no better time than now…I would love to see her kick some Hillary/Devon ass and come back to Neil. But Rowell, like Brenda Dickson, both overestimated their importance to the show, and they just cannot let go of their ego and their former glory. Jess Walton has been Jill for 28 years now, which is more than double the time Dickson spent as Jill. Unless you are a long time viewer, uou would have no clue who she is, or even care. Dickson still, to this day, basically claims that she alone was responsible for the show’s success. Delusional much?? Walton is arguably one of the most successful, popular recasts in soap opera history. Now, I dont think the show would attempt to recast Dru, just because of all the controversy swirling, and it would be in poor taste if they did so now with potential legal proceedings. However, I think that the one person who could have played Dru was Debbi Morgan, but she was instead cast in the.completely pointless role of Harmony and was soon gone from the show. The bottom line is that Rowell is operating from a place of ego, pride, bitterness, resentment, and revenge, and none of those will bring her peace of mind, gainful employment, or a hefty payday. I do hope she finds work that makes her happy, as she is a talented woman. It is just sad to continually hear of her beating the same dead horse. Like when Hunter Tylo sued Aaron Spelling, it was not to help pregnant women everywhere, it was to get cash. So Aaron had to part with some millions…it was a drop in the bucket tax write off for him. These actresses are really cutting off their noses to spite their faces, because even if they win these lawsuits, and are awarded cash, they are negatively impacting many chances for future employment. New employers do not like to work with people who they think might sue them, so they just wont hire them. I am not talking right or wrong here, I am talking reality vs. fantasy. Rowell is closing in on 60 years old…she is not 20 something and in hot demand. In a perfect world, or even a moderately compromosing world, both sides could sit down, talk rationally, and she could come back as Dru. That would be best for her, for the show, and for the viewers. But the chances of that…..
She must be needing some cash real bad, because this just makes her look desperate. They can’t be made to hire her if they don’t want. Last time I checked this was still a semi- free country.
k! bye bye dru for good! after neil gets over hevon, the genoa pd shld find dru s body mangled up on a river bank! lol.
time to commit to hilary, leslie or bring back aunt liv as the real matriach for the winters clan! i say leslie, she was neils equal!
at least neil and the fans can finally move on from dru s departure! that victoria rowell dug her own grave!
Its a shame she is such a pill, the Winters family is front and center! They should recast the role immediately!
‘Oh dear’ is all I can say right now!!!!!!!!!
I’ve been waiting for her return ever since they flung her off that cliff. I’ve had nothing against all these Dru fill ins since, but everybody needs to put all this foolishness behind the & BRING HER BACK!
Please
Rub a lamp, Miss Rowell – you have a better chance of having a Genie appear before your eyes than thinking you will win this frivolous and laughable lawsuit.
Phil Morris called her on her actions a while ago she never shuts up. He was on the show in the 1980’s with major story and very popular along with Stephanie Williams and yes they are both African American. This is what happens when you start thinking you are the show. She had a good thing going and she blew it!
Also I wonder if she thanks her mother is racist also since she is white!
Hehehehehehehe. I was going to say…it’s sad that the Winters aren’t black enough for her.
I think they should bring “Drucilla” back in the form of another actress. She is sooooo childish. Typical behavior of a child, when they don’t receive positive attention they begin to act out. It’s sad because she really is a good actress. Damn troublemakers!
Can’t imagine what a joy she was to work with…LOL
Psh. No kidding.
She is a good actress but she’s an activist for African/Americans which there is nothing wrong with but like anything there is a time & a place for it and work is not the place for it. Does anyone remember the award show a few years back when Pamela Anderson decided before reading the nominee’s she would talk about killing baby seal’s etc.? She got boo’d and rightfully so. Wrong time & place. Doing anything else is just trouble making all around. We live in a world where war is a daily thing on the news, people are getting killed (icis) Children losing their parent’s in the war, husband’s losing their wife’s etc. The last thing we need is someone stirring up trouble over cultures or color.
she wasnt even that good to begin with thats really why she isnt back on the show
What?! A batshit crazy Daytime Diva?! How could such a thing exist?
Victoria Rowell needs to get over herself already!!!!! Once a troublemaker, always a troublemaker…
I THINK SHE JUST TOOK CARE OF ANY CAREER SHE EVER HAD IN A SOAP!!!!!!!!!!!! DONT MISS HER AND DONT LISTEN TO HER WHATEVER SHE HAS TO SAY….CANT BLAME SONY FOR NOT REHIRING……SHE IS SHOWING HER TRUE COLORS NOW…
I no longer care if VR returns…i believe Dru’s return would been a boost for the show…either recast or bring back Olivia!!!
aunt liv!!! genoa city memorial needs thr doc back! plus she can mingle wth leslies husband!!!
I hate the race card…I think people use it constantly when things don’t do their way. I don’t even pay attention to the complaint once that card Is played. And Michael Fairman…With all due respect I wouldn’t state that she “faced years of racial discrimination.” Those are her claims..not facts. Dunno. If I thought I faced years of discrimination I wouldn’t stay at a job for 17 years..leave..and want to return. By the way…never watched the show, don’t know or care who she is, but the subject pisses me off so I read it and commented.
I 100% agree!
You know what’s sad about this whole thing? The fans are the ones who’ve lost because of her big fat mouth. I started watching the day she went careening off the cliff, so I missed the Drucilla dynasty, but I know she’s been a beloved character. She had to make everything about stuff that it isn’t, so the fans lose. Actors need to start to learn that the show will go on. And she’s probably been fuming that Lily is married to a white guy. That’s what keeps racism alive.
She really needs to let this go or get mental help.
I don’t feel sorry for Victoria Rowell. I loved her on the show, but any actor is dispensable. Any employee is dispensable. Somehow she thinks her character is key to the show, when in fact, Drucilla is not. In fact, I’m surprised they don’t just re-cast the part if the current regime felt the need to bring the character back. Victoria is only going to make matters worse for herself, as I’m sure Sony & CBS may have a thing or two up their sleeves to stave off any lawsuit.
She is hurt and in pain. I miss Drucilla. No one could replace her. Her independence is what made Drucilla a great character. BDB = Bring Drucilla Back.
Well, if there was any doubt before, there isn’t now. It doesn’t look like she’ll be back at Y&R, which is a huge disappointment because so many fans miss her. I guess the show will have to recast if they want to bring Dru back.
To be fair, though, the only prominent African-American characters on Y&R right now are Neil, Devon, Lily and Hilary. Leslie and Tyler have slipped into the background and we never see them anymore, same with Leslie’s husband Dr. Barton, whom I have no clue why he was even brought onto the show, played by Terrell Tilford no less, who can EASILY hold down a much bigger, more prominent role. Terrible waste of talent and poorly conceived character.
Tyler sucked! Dr. Barton is missed and would have been able to do front burner stories.
This is amazing, someone who publicly slams a former employer now files suit because they won’t hire her back. Really? Who does she think she is? This is a nuisance law suit. There are thousands qualified to take her place, she must think CBS is an entitlement. She needs anger management.
Victoria Rowell has lost her mind. She has completely ruined her career now,because nobody will touch her now. It makes no sense suing eight years after she QUIT to file a lawsuit. If somebody had wronged me I would take action immediately. Nobody else has had any problems at the show. Demanding to get hired,and turned down is no means for a lawsuit,and I don’t blame anyone for not wanting to hire her over her childish behavior. Y&R currently has more african american actors than the other 3 soaps combined,and a front burner AA story driving February sweeps,which contradicts her claim of no AA story on Y&R. I think she’s only doing this because she’s running low on money. There’s no doubt she will lose.
People may not have liked the forum she chose to voice her concerns but her issues were valid. Speking out is not playing the race card
Speaking out and then suing is playing the race card in my opinion.
She started on that show in 1990. There wasn’t a lot of diversity…yet obviously the network decided to change that. She maintained her job for years…Where are Native American roles, Asian roles, Jewish characters…black is not the only “other”race…and every job that’s lost, award not won, contest not won, crime unpunished…isn’t because the person is black. I wonder if Kanye would insult a black artist who won instead of Beyoncé. I wonder how many riots there would have been if OJ had been found guilty. I wonder how much media attention and possible protests would be happening if Bill Cosby was white and the majority of his alleged victims were black until justice was served. My point is the black victim card is played out, obnoxious and racist in and of itself.
No chance of her EVER returning now!?
Hmm, I left Sony in 2010 on my own accord to raise a family. Maybe I should ask for my old job back and, if they don’t give it to me, I should SUE.
Oh wait, I didn’t bite the hand that feeds me like Ms. Rowell did and publish some nasty book like she did. And I always got a raise and excellent performance reviews because I was NOT a cancer to work for/with.
What goes around, Ms. Rowell, comes around.
And I would like to add, if anyone is to come back, I would MUCH rather see the lovely actress that played her sister … not Druzilla. Neil and Liv would be good together.
I don’t have an opinion on this (although it doesnt seem very professional I agree!),
as I wasnt a Y and R viewer when Drucilla was on.
But from everything I have read, she and Neil were great together, a super
couple. Does this mean like Luke and Laura once were?
And if Lily is Malcolm’s, then Drucilla left Neil at some point? Or did she cheat
on him?
Anyway, I agree with those posting that she will lose this lawsuit! Dont see
a leg for her case to stand on.
Victoria Rowell is a has been and a desperate woman. She will lose in court, I used to like her. But now I have lost respect with this diva. Her money has run out, go do a reality show.
It’s craziness to say she has lost her mind. If she feels remotely anyway that CBS and others retaliated against her for speaking out privately or publicly is injustice and wrong. Let the record speak for itself, Y&R target audience has always been AA that tuned everyday to watch it. Regardless, if her Employer was CBS or Burger King if she felt there was wrongful doings at the top or behind the scene that right is hers to do something about it. Walk a mile in her shoes or anyway else for the matter or maybe even your own before you judge someone actions.
I don’t know anything about this woman, butthere needs to be more black actors on Days of our Lives. There are no actors of color who have lead roles and storylines. There is Abe, Maxine, Theo, but they do not have any developed storylines at this time. Days should do this.
So she thinks she can sue Sony and YR for not hiring her back. Good luck with that. She’ll be luck if she can get a job at all after this. YR is doing fine without her.
Given her Twitter ramblings and continued smack talk concerning CBS, Sony and the series, i don’t blame them for not welcoming her back; she’s shot herself in her own foot by continuing to play the race card, when I truly don’t see that as to why they wouldn’t re-hire her. Truthfully, she’s the one who quit, and maybe, just maybe, they don’t want her back. She needs to get over herself and realize I doubt she’ll ever be welcomed back, especially now.
If I remember correctly, CBS was accommodating to her when she worked on both Y&R and Diagnosis Murder. Notice the timeline of events here – marries someone that may have influenced her to rant and rave – in January He files for divorce from Her – lawsuit begins. Maybe she should look at who supported her (CBS) and who influenced her into a bad situation and maybe sue that person, not an entire company.
Ruh roh it’s Sharpton time!
I’ll tell you how crazy this broad is, NO ONE from the current cast has come to her defense. End of the story!
You might be right, Timmm, but I’ll also point this out: if she’s right, any current cast member who wants to keep his/her job would be foolish to say anything.
What I think is perhaps more telling is that nobody else that I’m aware of who was part of Y&R through the years but no longer is (and thus does not have a job to protect) has come out in support of her, either.
I know that one can sue in the United States over anything—there’s nothing to stop you, it’s your right. What I’m trying to figure out is what legal basis she’s arguing. It’s not illegal, so far as I know, for an employer to refuse to hire you back because you’ve bad-mouthed the employer publicly. So is she arguing that because her complaints were about racism/discrimination/unequal treatment, refusing to hire her back because of those complaints amounts to racial discrimination in hiring practices?
Her argument about Drucilla’s popularity is going to be a tough one to sell (not the argument that Dru was popular, she clearly was; the argument that Dru’s popularity would ordinarily have guaranteed VR’s reemployment if she had not been so outspoken). If Sony/Y&R can point to even a handful of examples of popular performers who wanted to come back but the show could not or did not accommodate them, that shoots that argument right out of the water.
On the face of it, I suspect that a case in which you’ve left a job voluntarily, but are arguing that you somehow have a right to be re-employed when you later change your mind, is hard to win, independent of the reason why the former employer won’t re-employ you. Since there’s no “right to re-employment” in such a case, why does she think they’re obligated to rehire her (even if she’d sung their praises through the years)?
I do think it’s worthy of note that she seems to be suing for money (i.e., a civil lawsuit), rather than filing an actual discrimination lawsuit—although the article isn’t clear on that.
Here is a good racial point to make on behalf of Sony/CBS. If Y&R is so unfair to work at and doesnt give minorities equal opportunities, why is it Shemar Moore left the show, become a prime time star and came back to Y&R for a short stint? Y&R put him on the map, he got a break in prime time and came back to Y&R as a favor. It wasnt for the money. He is grateful and not a psycho troublemaker.