“The Young and The Restless” (Y&R) spoilers indicate that the soap may be going in a new direction soon – thanks to the hiring of a new showrunner that CBS nabbed away from the UK soap world. Mal Young has been tapped by CBS to tackle Y&R – here’s a look at what’s coming.
On December 31, 2015 Mal tweeted, “This year I’m going to be Young and I’m going to be Restless.” Looks like he migrated to LA by the New Year as he tweeted a video of the Weezer song “Beverly Hills” on January 2 then followed up on January 8 with a tweet, “End of week one and loving my new Y&R CBS family.”
This year I’m going to be Young and I’m going to be Restless.
— mal young (@malyoung) January 1, 2016
End of week one and loving my new @YandR_CBS family
— mal young (@malyoung) January 9, 2016
Fan outcry has been positive since the announcement but just who is Mal Young and what does this mean for Jill Farren Phelps and Chuck Pratt Jr? Is one or the other of them leaving? Is Mal an addition to the showrunner staff or a replacement for one (or both) of them?
Fans have been harsh in their criticism of Phelps particularly over the axing of Michael Muhney (which still seems dodgy) and departure of fan faves such as Billy Miller and Michelle Stafford – the latter two migrated to Phelps former soap home at “General Hospital.”
Mal Young has a storied history over in the UK in producing and creating daytime dramas. He’s worked in TV for more than 30 years. The first show he created was “And The Beat Goes On” and it was a hit and he’s had his hands in other successful projects for decades.
As Controller of Continuing Drama Series (i.e. big boss of soaps) at BBC, Young ramped up production of existing shows and started a new medical drama called Doctors and a spin-off titled Holby City. He also worked on legal drama, anthology shows and the BBC’s legendary Doctor Who.
At the same time the US market was shutting down soaps that had been in production for decades, Young was ramping up interest in UK soaps – and he turned around EastEnders (the famed UK soap) which was flagging. Perhaps he can bring back fans to US soaps as well and get networks to understand the value of us loyal soap fans.
This is an exciting time to be a Y&R fan – Jason Thompson, an excellent actor, steps into the role of Billy Abbott this week plus we’ve got this wild-card UK guy who knows daytime drama like nobody’s business there now to shake things up – we hope it will be a good thing.
While Y&R is still tops in the ratings, it seems like the axe is always hovering since shows cheaper to produce can easily replace our favorite daytime dramas. Mal Young has served as a story consultant for other soaps, so that may be his role at Y&R rather than showrunner – no official title has been released yet for his gig.
Even though many fans have been vocal with their frustration over how Jill Farren Phelps and Chuck Pratt Jr have handled certain legacy characters and storylines, the bottom line is the ratings are still solid. Chuck Pratt told TV Insider last year, “They hate it but they’re watching.”
However, perhaps TPTB at CBS don’t share that pessimistic sentiment. You’ll recall in summer of 2015, CBS published a lengthy survey asking fans all about what they liked and didn’t like about Y&R. Maybe a collation of that data has led CBS higher-ups to take a long hard look at what’s ailing the show.
Even if it is tops in the ratings (for now), that doesn’t mean that fans can’t and won’t walk away at any time. Is Mal Young just the first in a series of major changes coming to Y&R? Is CBS implementing an action plan based on those survey results?
Perhaps with the addition of Mal Young – and other tweaks – the mantra can change to: “They love it and they’re watching…” What do you think Y&R fans? Do you think the addition of the UK soap mogul can shake up Y&R in the right way? Are you ready for a change at the helm of the CBS soap?
Share your thoughts in the comments below and check back with CDL often for tons more “The Young and The Restless” spoilers, news and updates.
