‘The Young And The Restless’ Star Christel Khalil Announces Surprise Move To Recurring
The Young and the Restless star Christel Khalil, who portrays Lily Ashby in Genoa City, announced that she’s moved from contract to recurring status.
Khalil, a 16 year veteran of the soap, took to Instagram to announce the significant change. She shared a stunning picture of herself, which she captioned with an explanation of her unexpected decision. Khalil wrote,
“Hello Lovelies! I wanted you to be the first to know that if you see less of me on @youngandrestlesscbs, it’s because I have decided to switch from Y&R full time to recurring status. That means I’m not leaving, just ready (after 16 amazing years playing Lily) to explore new things! I will continue to be a proud member of the Y&R family and look forward to further adventures playing Lily. Thank you for all the love and support over the years!
xoxo Christel.”
The actress’s announcement shocked fans, considering Lily’s extensive storyline right now. Some fans worried that Khalil had been let go by the show. Plus, with Mishael Morgan recently leaving, and news that Eileen Davidson (Ashley Abbott) is on her way out, fans feel wary of changes. However, Y&R executive producer and head writer, Mal Young, tweeted his support of the star’s unexpected move, which may or may not put an end to the nearly endless fan speculation.
Young tweeted, “We fully support Christel’s decision. We’re pleased to say that both she and Lily will remain a much-loved part of Y&R.”
We fully support Christel’s decision. We’re pleased to say that both she and Lily will remain a much-loved part of Y&R https://t.co/H3MhKghXiE
— mal young (@malyoung) August 27, 2018
Currently, on the show, Lily faces up to 20 years in prison for running a red light that caused the accident that killed Hilary (Mishael Morgan). Since the news came out, her brother Devon (Bryton James) has pushed for her to serve the maximum sentence to the horror of her husband, Cane (Daniel Goddard) and her twins, Charlie (Noah Alexander Gerry) and Mattie (Lexie Stevenson).
For more than a decade and a half, Lily played a considerable role in Genoa City as Neil’s (Kristoff St. John) daughter and part of the Winters core family, and her choice to reduce her time on the show to recurring came as a surprise. Of course, given the news, it sounds as if Lily may end up serving some time as a result of her upcoming trial.
Right now, Lily is gravely concerned about her ability to survive in prison, and her twins are determined to help their mother learn the skills she needs to survive behind bars, according to Inquisitr‘s recap. It sounds like Lily may end up finding out if she’s tough enough to live a life where orange is the new black.
