Stephen Nichols Leaving Soap: Tucker McCall May Be Gone From ‘The Young And The Restless’

Stephen Nichols could be leaving the soap where he has starred for the past three years, meaning fans of The Young and the Restless may soon have to say goodbye to Tucker McCall.

The actor has reportedly taped his last episode of the CBS daytime drama. Reports that Nichols is leaving the soap give no reason for his departure, however, but it’s also being reported that actress Jessica Heap is also exiting the show, TV Guide noted.

News that Stephen Nichols is leaving the soap comes just as The Young and the Restless hits a major milestone. Earlier in the month hits its 24th year on the top of the daytime drama ratings, The Associated Press reported. Given the decline of daytime dramas as more networks have opted to show talk shows, the accomplishment is seen as quite a feat. When the show premiered in 1973 there were 13 soap operas on the air, but today only four remain. The show averaged 4.4 million viewers in early December, and though it has seen its rating drop, it is still good enough to beat the remaining shows The Bold and The Beautiful and General Hospital and Days of Our Lives.“It’s definitely not something that we take for granted,” Angelica McDaniel, senior vice president of daytime for CBS, told The Associated Press.The 61-year-old Nichols is leaving the soap after three years, having joined in 2009. Before that he played Steve Johnson on Days of Our Lives from 1985 through 1990 and again from 2006 through 2009. In between those stints he also played Stefan Cassadine on General Hospital between 1996 and 2003.