When Nick Newman (Joshua Morrow) goes bad … he certainly does it with plenty of gusto! Over the last week, viewers of The Young and the Restless were left stunned when it turned out that this one-time do-gooder, turned heel, but not without purpose.  After constantly ending up on the short end of the stick, and after his father Victor’s (Eric Braeden) dirty machinations to take away Nick’s son, Christian, (yes, we know Adam is the bio-dad) and gain custody of the little boy for himself, Nick was left devastated vowing to not let anything like this happen again.

With revenge on his mind, Nick set out a plan that no one got wind of.  He leaked documents of Newman Enterprises … he masqueraded around town as the “dead” J.T. Hellstrom (Thad Luckinbill) … he opened his own company to take away his father’s business …  and that is just for starters.  Now back with the love of his life, Sharon (Sharon Case), once she was clued in on what Nick was doing their relationship seemed on the rocks.  So, what was Nick to do?  Have sex with Phyllis (Gina Tognoni)!  These two former lovers commiserate over their current relationship woes, while being turned on by how Nick pulled the wool over everyone’s eyes.

Michael Fairman TV sat down with Joshua Morrow, who we consider one of the true MVP’s of daytime drama, to dish on all the latest twists which have pulled Nick to the dark side.  In addition, what it means for the future in his relationship with Sharon, for that undeniable chemistry Nick has with Phyllis, and how that “J.T.” mask scared the pants off four women he cares about without him even knowing why!

Candid with that razor-sharp wit, here’s what Joshua had to say about what has gone down, and what’s to come!

So, things take a shocking turn when Nick has now donned a prosthetic mask that looks just like J.T …

JOSHUA:  Yes, this unbelievably non-creepy looking mask, too. (Laughs) 

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

However, are you and Thad Luckinbill the same height? (Laughs)

JOSHUA:  No, Thad is taller at least by an inch!  I did not think it was much of an issue, but it was very technical how they had to shoot that.  It was a fascinating process to watch.  Thad shot his scenes first, and then I came in and did mine.  They imposed my face onto his, and my face is longer and fatter.  Since Thad is taller, he had to stand with his legs spread a little bit to get down to my angle.  Then, I had to do my scenes in the angle he was originally staring at Victor with; which is why in a lot of the scene I was staying as still as possible. The way the scene was written kind of helped with what we were trying to do technically, in that; Nick was calm and matter-of-fact, and laying out his threat to Victor.

What was your reaction when they first pitched this story point to you that Nick would be masquerading as J.T. with a mask on?

JOSHUA:  I remember when Mal Young (EP and head writer, Y&R) first told me about it.  I just thought it was the most ridiculous thing.  I am like, “What?”  I didn’t know if it was going to work, but when we got down to it, I could not believe how incredible it looked on the reveal.  It was a real testament to our crew, Mal, and Patty Denney in make-up, and everyone who brought it all together.

Did you ever figure out how Nick knew where to get a prosthetic mask made to look like J.T.? (Laughs)  I was like, “Boy, is he resourceful!  Who knew that Nick Newman would know where to shop for this!” (Laughs)

JOSHUA:  I think he googled it! (Laughs)  It’s amazing what you can google!

I would have loved to have added in the scene where Nick is on his laptop thinking hard and typing away feverishly in the search field, “Where to get prosthetic masks.”

JOSHUA:  He would have to have found a way not to leak that.  People would come by at his work and go, “Why are you looking up masks, Nick?”  Meanwhile, he is getting multiple bids from the mask companies. (Laughs) 

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

When you watched the scene back; what did you think of it?  On top of that reveal, you then launched into this intense monologue.

JOSHUA:  I thought the scene was beautifully lit and the alleyway looked awesome.  Props did a great job of making it look seedy and dark.  It took a longtime to shoot.  A lot of people were caught up in what was actually happening, but if you add up in words how much I had to say, it was an unbelievable amount of talking.  It was essentially a five-page monologue.  I studied it so much and rehearsed it so much, that I was starting to lose my voice from it.  However, it worked and we did it in one take, which I was pretty happy about it. 

Were you and Eric Braeden joking between takes when it had to do with Nick and his “J.T.” mask?

JOSHUA:  We made some jokes initially, but because there was so much material, that whenever any of us has something like that to do with that amount of work, you want to try and be as professional as possible to let them get through it anyway they can.  Eric is obviously is a pro.  He understood what I was having to do. 

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

It was a great monologue you were given and delivered, especially when Nick pointed out to Victor, that in Victor’s eyes, Nick was his ‘underachieving son.”  Y&R has never really explored how Nick was not the shining bright star in the family that Victor wanted him to be, and how Victor heaped much of that praise on Adam, for he was more “Victor-like.”

JOSHUA:  Well, he was supposed to be the apple of his father’s eye, and that was what was so disappointing.  A lot of people have said that, and I don’t think you can fault Victor for that.  He had all these grand plans for Nick, but Nick has just flat out said: “I am going to do what I want to do.”  He has done that his whole life.  It’s not what his dad wanted.  It wasn’t that Victor was disappointed in who he had become, he was disappointed that Nick was not willing to accept the path that Victor planned out for him. I understood what Victor had gone through over the years with Nick.  In terms of the monologue, it was a great speech.  I thought it was well-written, and the fact that Victor has always been supportive of Adam as opposed to Nick, while Adam has done way more horrible things than Nick has.  Nick never really understood that.   I thought the scene worked, and it’s a really cool story to tell.  I get that a lot of people may not dig it, but this is the most fun I have had on Y&R, since they initially paired Nick with Phyllis.

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Last week, many fans took to social media and were outraged going, “How can Nick do this to his sister, Victoria?”

JOSHUA:  I remember saying that to Mal.  I said, “I don’t have a single problem with any of this, but Victoria is his best friend.  She is this person that he will do anything to protect.  The two of them have gone to each other about everything.  So, how does he do this to her?”  Mal sold it to me by saying, “All Nick is doing is teaching Victor a lesson, and he believes that because Victoria is so close with him that eventually she will come to understand.”  Nick knows he is going to hurt her initially, but the hope is that he can sell her on this, and make her join him.  I was really hoping for a lot more scenes where they are heartbroken with each other.  Those would have been interesting to play, but Nick has been so driven in his plan, and that is a lot of what I have been doing, while Victoria is fighting on the other side.  We will see what happens, but there is beauty in conflict that hurts.  That is ultimately what this is going to boil down to.  Nick is not going to be too hurt by what is going on with his dad, but he should be demolished to see what his sister is going through.  Hopefully, they will touch on that.

It all comes back to Nick losing custody of Christian as the tipping point.  That was followed by a scene of Nick just looking in the mirror, which foreshadowed that a dark side of Nick will emerge.  So, what is Nick’s ultimate plan?

JOSHUA:  He wants to destroy Victor, even though he got his son back.  Victor crossed such a line with him.  After everything Nick had gone through with Christian and Adam, he realized that is father is not just controlling, but this is an evil bastard who would do something like this.  Nick made a vow, “I am not going to let him do this to anyone ever again that I care about.”  That is what it is rooted in.  That he wants to destroy Newman Enterprises that is just a side of it.  Nick just really wants to hurt his dad in the worst possible way, and you do that by taking the thing that matters the most to him … his business.  I don’t think Nick fully realized the scope of it.  He thinks he can just move everything over to his new company and lead the fight in that direction.  I don’t know how far he has thought ahead, but he knows what he wants to do right now, and how he is going to do it.

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Does Nick feel “power” now?

JOSHUA:  Yes, and it’s a power rooted in the fact that; he still believes he is doing it on his own terms, and is coming from a good place, even though he can’t see the darkness that is slowly creeping in; which I think thematically is really cool.  That is; this fight to remain true to himself, but this pull to this dark element that his father is always preaching and really living. The question is: can Nick still maintain this path he wants to go on without doing what his dad has had to do?  That is what we will see play out.

Nick is now a man full of surprises.  Last week, we also learned that he has started his own company to go toe to toe with Victor … “Dark Horse”.  In the process, he is trying to sway family members to join him.  How is that working out for him?

JOSHUA:  His ultimate goal is to take Newman Enterprises, which was supposed to be this family run company; where everyone was participating, and bringing all their specials skills and qualities that they have, but it really just became that everyone is under Victor’s thumb.  Nick wants to do the same thing, but let people be who they are, and bring those things that you are good at, so they can be successful together.  He is trying to sell them: “Do this with me and I will let you be you, and you can go as far as you want to within the company.”  It’s very idyllic.  Now whether it’s doable, who knows?   Nick approaches everyone in his family to “Please join my side.”  It’s basically creating this line in the sand, that either you are with Nick, or against him.  It’s that simple. It’s sort of what Victor does, but Nick does it with a smile. (Laughs)

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

What about his mother, Nikki (Melody Thomas Scott)?  That puts her in a tough position to choose between the man she loves and her son.

JOSHUA:  Nick was really counting on Nikki to be on his side, but Nikki chose Victor.  Nick instantly thought that everyone would join him, and that is not the way it panned out.  I still don’t’ think he sees the errors in his ways, in the way he went about this, and that is probably due to his ego, and his drive getting in the way of that.  Abby (Melissa Ordway) joins him, and Noah, eventually.  No one else is his family does.  He thought Victoria would jump on it, but she says, “No.”  Victoria is finally promised Newman Enterprises and that leads her to say that, and that kind of sets up a cool conflict for Nick and Victoria moving forward as to business people and competing in the same space.  His main ally is Jack (Peter Bergman) and Jack is going to join Nick to take on Victor.

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Are you concerned about the fan backlash to your character, who was always the “good guy”?

JOSHUA:  I don’t care that people don’t like it.  What I do care about is that they don’t give the story a chance and they make it personal if they say, “You are incapable of handling a story of this magnitude.” We are in the business of entertaining people, and sometimes it hits you positively, and sometimes it hits you negatively. Some of the best films I have ever seen, I couldn’t stand the way it was going down, but if it hits you, if it makes you think, if it makes you see people evolving, then it’s interesting, and that’s kind of what has happened with Nick.  It’s time for him to do something!  He has been sitting on Sharon’s couch and trying other businesses, but at his core, he knew it would eventually lead back down to something like this; doing something on his own terms, which is exactly what he wanted.

Let’s talk about Sharon.  Were you surprised that the show put Nick and Sharon back together so fast back in late March of this year, coming on the heels of Chelsea (Melissa Claire Egan) leaving Nick?

JOSHUA:  I was really shocked.  But, we are all so unbelievably protective of our characters, and while telling these stories, we are trying to tell them as true as possible to them.  This happened so fast with Sharon that it felt to me like, a matter of convenience.  Melissa Claire Egan (Ex-Chelsea) left and created this kind of void.  At the end of the day, Nick and Sharon love each other, they always have.  It doesn’t not make sense to put them together.  I just thought the timing of it seemed quick and it kind of questioned what Nick and Chelsea were building towards; which I thought would have been an amazing situation.  However, when Adam was never around, it lost some of the weight that it would have had.  A lot of weight, actually, and then Missy decided to leave, which about killed me.  She turned into my best friend here.  I love her, and I completely supported her decision, but, what do you do?  You can’t just have characters running around alone all of the time.  Nick and Sharon will always find their way back to each other.  The timing and the pacing is completely up to the writers and the producers.  I will tell what ever story they want me to.

How did you feel about the arbitration scenes? I thought everyone was great in them from: Christian LeBlanc (Michael) to Eric, Melody, Sharon, you, and Lauren Woodland (Brittany). Victor and Michael went for the jugular delving into the mental state of Sharon. That ultimately played a major factor in Victor being awarded custody of Christian, and not Nick.

JOSHUA:  Weren’t those scenes good?  They seemed so real!

Then came the scenes where they take Christian from Nick.  Those were so incredibly sad, and watching you as Nick break down in tears is always heart-breaking.   It was one of your best performances.  How were those for you to portray?

JOSHUA:  It was sad, and it is very difficult to do.  Playing these kinds of scenes with these children hits me extra hard.  I love kids.  My whole life I wanted to be a teacher, or a coach.  My dad was a teacher.  I started to coach U8 Soccer when I was twelve-years old.  I love being around children.

Photo Credit JPI Studios

Why do you think that is?

JOSHUA:  I don’t know, but I like watching them, teasing them, and that’s why I coach.  I create these relationships with these little kids and they just mean so much to me.  I know at my core I was meant to be a dad, and a coach.  They bring these kids on our show, and you tell these very emotional stories, and you just fall in love with them. They are hard stories to tell when you remove kids from parents.  I have dealt with it now several times.  They are good stories to tell, well-written, hard to do, but I am always so impressed with the material kids are given – they are often very mature-type storylines, and to watch them tell them makes you swell with pride.  Now, that scene in particular with Christian, all that kid has to do is lay on my shoulder, and just that moment alone makes me tear up.  It’s like he could feel the magnitude of what was happening.  If you notice in the scenes we do, he rarely just lays on my shoulder and like melts into you, and that’s what happened in that moment, and it just crushed me.  As an actor, you are still trying to remember what you are doing in the scene, but it was hard to do   I love that little boy!  We would play in his the dressing room with trucks, and he sees me and he walks out and puts his arms out.  It’s not hard to peel him away from the teacher, and he just lays in my arms and talks. I love him, but I feel that way about: Hunter King (Summer), and Robert Adamson (Noah), and Alyia Alyn Lind (Faith), and Camryn Grimes (Mariah), too!  I truly treat them as if they were my kids, and if they need anything I would be there for them.

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Right now, Sharon is not happy with this new Nick!

JOSHUA: Nor, should she be.

Of course, now there is major trouble in the relationship, right after Nick proposed to Sharon and she said “Yes.”

JOSHUA:  After this incredible move by Nick, she lights into him about it. He goes, “How can you not be happy about this?” (Laughs)  She just stares at him.  I love the balls of Nick to just say that!   It was just a subtle, great moment from Sharon. (Laughs)

Sharon along with Nikki, Phyllis and Victoria buried J.T. in the ground after Nikki smashed him with a poker.  Nick doesn’t even know this has happened and he is scaring the wits out of these women!

JOSHUA:  What Nick doesn’t know, and I am sure all the fans are screaming; is what all these women know.  They think that they killed J.T, and Nick has been essentially terrorizing them without knowing it with this dead body.  He doesn’t know what is going on.  He is like, “What is wrong with you guys?” (Laughs)  So, maybe when it all comes out, Nick will go, “Oh, maybe that wasn’t the best tactic I should have taken.”  Right now, they are staring at Nick like he has a second head going: “How can you put us through this?” The women are giving Nick “Halloween eyes”, and he keeps going, “I just don’t get why everyone has a problem with what I did.” (Laughs)

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Nick and Phyllis have sex after he pulls off the first part of his master plan.  So, how would you describe what happened that in essence beelines him to his old flame?

JOSHUA:  Well, it’s go-time!  At his core, he just loves to take his clothes off! (Laughs)  So … what happened was … everyone is not happy, of course.  Nick comes home and sees that Sharon has removed her ring.  She is not home, and he assumes she is not willing to forgive him, and she took the ring off, and it’s over.  So, he leaves and is assuming they are on a “break”.  Then, he runs into the ‘electric hotness” that is Phyllis, who always gets to Nick.  She is upset about Billy (Jason Thompson) and his gambling.  They are both not happy, and they have had a couple of drinks.  They go to their foreplay which is video games.  Nick and Phyllis have always related with video games.  They are talking, and I think what ultimately happens is Phyllis is turned on by the things Nick has done, because he had outlined exactly what he did to Victor.  Phyllis has a quality in her that responds to that.  She finds it very sexy that Nick would go to these lengths and the way that he did it.  It’s definitely not propinquity, but something happens.  So, they decide to have some good ole’ sex right on the counter on the kitchen.  Good place to have sex … it’s really comfortable. (Laughs)

How does Nick feel about it when they are done?

JOSHUA:  Nick is a lot of things, but monogamy is not his greatest quality.  He feels bad about it, but if you look at Nick and Phyllis’ history, Nick has generally turned to her when he in trouble, heartbroken, confused or sad, and Phyllis seems to pull him out of that with her body.

I foresee a lot of scenes of Nick and Phyllis dancing around what happened, shooting each other weird, or frightened looks back and forth between them, especially when Sharon or Billy are in a room with them. 

JOSHUA:  Yeah, they both understand the situation.  Nick loves Sharon, and Phyllis loves Billy. They both know it was mistake; a one-shot deal between them, and they agree to keep it a secret. 

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

But … it is really ever over with Phyllis?

JOSHUA:   It’s never really over with Nick and Phyllis, unless someone cuts Nick off in traffic when he is in the mode of: “I’ve got to go see Phyllis! She will help me!”  Neither one of them wants to turn the page on Billy or Sharon.  They make this pact, and they are going to try to move on and pick up the pieces.

Will Phyllis come over to work with Nick at “Dark Horse?”

JOSHUA:  He does approach Phyllis about coming over to work with him, and he says, “Remember, what we did with our clothes off?  Should we do that with suits and briefcases?” (Laughs)  No, but seriously, she declines.  Phyllis says she is really happy with what she is doing, and she also says, it’s not the best thing for them to be doing, since they just had sex with each other, and they are going to try and forget about it and move on, and that they should not be around each other every single day.  Phyllis is right. They should not be around each other every single day, because ultimately they will just start having sex again.

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Do you think Nick getting custody of Christian back happened to quickly?

JOSHUA:  No, I don’t. Victor clearly had some other issues going on, but I don’t think you could make a believable case that Nick should not have this little boy.  No sane judge, no lawyer, would make that decision.  I think once cooler heads prevailed, and that Victor is not exactly healthy, they saw that Nick should raise Christian.

Does Nick know what is physically wrong with Victor?

JOSHUA:  He knows Victor is having some kind of side-effect from the stroke.  I don’t think he knows the extent, or that he is being treated by Dr. Nate Hastings (Brooks Darnell).

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

Would that be a game-changer for Nick, if his found out his dad was very sick and fighting for his life?  Would Nick even care at this point?

JOSHUA:  Well, outlining the story it just can’t be this one note: Nick is going to destroy his father for the rest of his life. There has to be some way for them to reconcile. Maybe, it is over Victor’s health.  That would make a lot of sense to me.  I don’t know how it is going to all play out, but I don’t think it makes a lot of sense for Nick and Victor to hate each other for the rest of their lives.  Eric and I have such great scenes together, and there are nice moments when we are allowed to be father and son.  I love the story and I hope that they don’t cut it off, but the writers will have to come up with some way to bridge that gap.

They have to redeem Nick, too.

JOSHUA:  Yes, they can’t just let him be fingers in the air, and “I’m the man, and everyone else can go screw themselves.”  That being said, I am really looking forward to the struggle of that happening.  It’s a story I am looking forward to telling.

You always said in past interviews that you liked playing the hero.

JOSHUA:  Yeah, and even when I was young I wanted to be a fireman.  I was obsessed with the idea of rescuing people.  I just wanted to save people.   Nick does have that quality.  He does want to protect his family and fix things for everyone.

Photo Credit: JPI Studios

However, it must be so nice and refreshing for Nick to have a dark side, finally!

JOSHUA:  It sounds crazy to say, but having some darkness to play is refreshing. It’s given me a whole new lease on life around here.  I am coming up on my 25th year on Y&R, early next year.  Six months ago, I was thinking “I am done at 25 years.  I just don’t think I can do it anymore.  It’s been a great run.  I’ve said everything I can say.”  But honestly, this story has given me a new energy about it that I don’t see that happening.

What did you think of: Nick and Phyllis having sex?  His motives for masquerading as J.T.?  Creating his own company to take down Victor?  Do you like the darker side of Nick? Have you enjoyed the performances in this storyline from Joshua?  Comment below!