Michelle Stafford Pays Tribute to Y&R Pal Christian Le Blanc

In a case of art imitating life, Michelle Stafford is sharing a scene from The Young and the Restless that she says is representative of her dynamic with co-star and pal Christian Le Blanc. Their respective characters, Phyllis Summers and Michael Baldwin, have nearly always been there for each other.

Michelle Stafford: Reel Life Friendship

“I normally wouldn’t post a long scene like this,” Stafford explains on Instagram, referring to a post of Friday’s air show in which Phyllis and Michael share one of their famous heart-to-heart talks. “A friend of mine in Canada texted me that tomorrow’s U.S. show (that shows in Canada the day before) was so nice.

“I went to [Sharon Champagne’s] page as I knew she would have it. (Thank you, girl),” Stafford continued. “This is probably one of my favorite scenes between me and [Christian Le Blanc]. Two friends talking. That’s all, just talking. But it’s so loaded. We are nothing like our characters [see more of their character’s friendship here], but this scene between us is rich with history and real to who we are. That’s what I love most about YR, The history of character.

“At the core, I think Phyllis is a very sad, apathetic woman who is trying to overcome it at all times,” theorizes Phyllis’s portrayer. “This scene also affects me deeply as I know my very good pal Christian is going through a very challenging time in his personal life. Life imitates art. Art imitates life. Whatever. It’s true tho. This could be my new favorite scene between me and the superlative [Christian Le Blanc] ❤️.”

Last month, a New Orleans TV station aired a report on Le Blanc in which he shared with reporter Eric Paulsen that he was battling multiple myeloma. Recently, Le Blanc posted a photo of himself in the hospital with a caption that read: “WHO AM I GLORIA [EXPLETIVE] SWANSON???” — which is a (paraphrased) line from Soapdish delivered by Sally Field, who played Celeste Talbert. Soap Hub wishes Le Blanc a continued recovery.