Dru And Neil: Victoria Rowell Remembers Kristoff St. John

When Kristoff St. John was found dead in his home on February 3, his friends and co-stars were devastated with grief, including his leading lady of nearly two decades on The Young and the Restless.

Victoria Rowell played Drucilla Barber Winters from 1990 until 2007 on YR and helped Neil raise the next generation of Winters, including Devon and Lily. In the end, Dru met an untimely death and fans always hoped for those two characters to reunite because few deaths are ever final in daytime.

Sadly, in real-life they are, and now Rowell is speaking out about her dear friend, a man she tweeted never stopped fighting to reunite their characters on screen.

She told Entertainment Tonight that St. John had recently sent her photographs of them together.

“So, I reached out to him because this is a red flag,” Rowell said through tears. “Why is he sending me these retrospective pictures of our relationship? When I reached out, he said he was fine, but this just sat with me. It was always in the back of my brain because I knew he was struggling.”

“Maybe Kristoff couldn’t get the help he needed,” Rowell continued. “And he was in real pain.

During the ET interview, Rowell was brought to further tears when the host showed her an interview he did with St. John soon after his son, Julian, was found dead in 2014.

“He was just broken by that loss,” she said. “Kristoff never got over it.”

But sadness is not all she remembers about her dear friend and longtime co-star. When the host asked Rowell how she remembers St. John, the first word out of her mouth was “joy.”

“When he put his hands on my shoulders, it was real. I always felt safe, and when I look at that, it brings me joy. And, it brings me such sorrow. But, love is eternal.”

To see Rowell pour her heart out about her acting and scene partner of 17 years, watch the video here.