When Eileen Davidson debuted as Ashley Abbott on The Young and the Restless (YR) during the summer of 1982, she made such a splash that is seemed inconceivable that anyone else would be able to take her place once Davidson departed six years later.
And yet, two more actresses did exactly that. There was Brenda Epperson, who looked a lot more like Davidson than acted like her, from 1988 to 1995.
Then it was Shari Shattuck, who, um, played a character named Ashley Abbott, who was related to the same people, and had the same ex-husbands… but didn’t exactly seem to be Ashley Abbott.
Davidson returned in 1999, and has been coming and going ever since.
Well, now she’s going again. And the powers that be are faced with a familiar dilemma. To recast or not to recast? Over 8,000 fans had these words of advice for them:
Give It Another Shot
OK, so neither Epperson nor Shattuck were great fits, 52% of you admit. But that doesn’t mean you should give up trying! Peter Bergman replaced Terry Lester as Jack when nobody thought that could be done. Jess Walton replaced both Brenda Dickinson and Deborah Adair as Jill, and Melody Thomas Scott isn’t the first Nikki!
The right Ashley recast is out there – you’ve just got to go look! The current story with Dina (Marla Adams) and Jack is just too important for Ashley to disappear… wherever it is Traci (Beth Maitland) went.
Besides, Billy (Jason Thompson) is about to run Jabot into the ground. Who will step in if not Ashley?
Give Up the Ghost
Not so fast, an almost equal 48% caution. It took three Sharons before ending up with Sharon Case, and the same number of Diane’s, only to have her killed off. The YR casting department has as many misses as it has hits, and Ashley is too iconic of a role to mess with.
The Young and the Restless (YR) airs weekdays on CBS. Check your local listings for airtimes.
Video Credit: Pepsi Wolf
Video Credit: zbold010
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