The Young and the Restless viewers know that Diane Jenkins is (supposedly) a changed woman. She faked her death and left for years, but she’s back and making up for lost time. For her performance, Soap Hub Performer of the Week honors for Y&R is presented to Diane’s portrayer, Susan Walters.
Susan Walters: Y&R Performer of the Week
Diane went through a few things this week. First, she attended the gala newly engaged to Jack (Peter Bergman), and Walters did an amazing job portraying Diane’s slight nervousness at what she’d face there combined with her love for Jack. Her facial expressions at different moments, body language, and tone of voice helped her tell the story of Diane’s anxiety.
Then, when Phyllis (Michelle Stafford) used a fake story about Kyle (Michael Mealor) to lure her upstairs, Walters conveyed Diane’s concern as a mother after she got over her skepticism of Phyllis’s story. Of course, as soon as she realized, Diane stood up for herself, and Walters used a forceful tone of voice.
Walters has done a wonderful job leaving the audience wondering if Diane has truly changed, and the actress played into that when Diane finally snapped at Phyllis. She’s struggled to take the high road and has goaded Phyllis (and others) a few times recently. However, Diane has never gone so far as to slap somebody and strangle them as she did this week. The actress did an excellent job in the fight scenes between Diane and Phyllis. She really sold that Diane had lost her cool entirely.
Another telling moment came when Phyllis collapsed, and Diane noticed her ring in her nemesis’s lifeless hand. While most of the rest of the gala worried about Phyllis’s wellbeing, Diane showed her true colors by quickly snatching that ring, and the whole thing happened with no dialogue. Susan Walters had the perfect body language and facial expressions to convey Diane’s stealthy move. Finally, when Chance (Conner Floyd) questioned her, the actress stood defiant and delivered Diane’s lines with the perfect righteous indignation.
Ultimately, Walters had to play a wide range from a newly engaged bride-to-be to a worried mother to a furious woman, and she did it brilliantly. Bravo on an excellent performance.
The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS. For an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.
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