The Young and the Restless star Camryn Grimes got tripped up when she filmed with Ethan Ray Clark for the first time. He was cast as the new Dominic, the son of Abby and Devon. Grimes got flashbacks to when she first started on the soap. Her origin story was that she was kidnapped as a young child.
Key Takeaways
- Mariah’s downward spiral continued, marked by visions of Ian Ward.
- She abducted Dominic, the child that she carried for Abby and Devon.
- Camryn Grimes admitted it was a “full-circle moment” for her, who got her start on the soap at 7 years old.
Mariah’s Origin Story
Mariah (Grimes, who has Y&R fans buzzing about ‘Summiah.‘) was abducted by cult leader Ian Ward (Ray Wise). As an infant, she was separated from her twin sister, Cassie Newman, who was taken into foster care. Mariah was later introduced as an adult in 2014, with the backstory of her traumatic upbringing.
Ian stole Mariah from Sharon (Sharon Case) and raised her within a cult, setting the ground for her traumatic childhood. Throughout the years, he groomed her and forced her into marriage. Camryn Grimes, who now plays Mariah, originally played her twin sister at the age of 7 in 1997.
At the time, Grace Turner (Jennifer Gareis) abducted Cassie. She wanted to raise her as her own. Grace tracked down Sharon’s baby, whom she had put up in foster care. But then Grace grew attached to the child and wanted to raise her in Genoa City.
As Mariah comes to terms with her past trauma, Grimes told Soap Opera Digest that she got flashbacks from when she first started on the soap. She’s going through that experience again through Ethan Ray Parker, who plays the new Dominic.
“One of my first stories on Y&R was me being kidnapped by Grace,” Grimes revealed. “So it’s kind of this full-circle moment, almost 30 years later, for my character, Mariah, to be doing that when that happened to Cassie.”
Too Close to Home
Grimes is a mother to her two-year-old son, Bridger, whom she shares with husband Brock Powell. She was concerned about taking on this heavy storyline, not for her sake, but for her younger co-star. She’s always protective of the younger actors who have appeared on the soap throughout the years.
“It’s like, he’s a kid one second, and then you’re rolling, and he just knows exactly what he’s doing, and he’s got all of his lines down,” Grimes explained. “He’s very, very lovely, and super funny and sweet.”
In Mariah’s head, she believes she should raise Dominic as her own. She plans to take him away from his parents so they can have a happy life as mother and son. Grimes called out her alter-ego, calling the storyline “deeply complicated and wrong.”
But Mariah isn’t of sound mind at this time and doesn’t realize that what she’s doing could put them in danger. Grimes thinks her character believes that she can get away with abducting Dominic.
The actress explained that she’s detached from her current reality and emotions. Because of this, she sees things in “black and white” only. Unfortunately, in Mariah’s mind, the risks will outweigh the benefits.
