Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Michael Graziadei has been on the frontlines of Young and Restless 's most dramatic tale as his alter ego, Daniel Romalotti, reels from the recent death of his lady love, Heather and its impact on his daughter, Lucy — and as if that's not tough enough, Sharon is doing her very best to frame him for Heather's grisly demise. Soap Opera Digest checked in with the actor for his take on the exit of his leading lady, Vail Bloom, as Heather, and all the turmoil in Daniel's life.
Soap Opera Digest: How did you first find out that the show was scripting a death for Heather as part of this sweeping tale honoring Sharon Case's 30th anniversary as Sharon?
Michael Graziadei: I didn't know until they told her [Vail Bloom] , to be completely honest with you. I knew that Vail had a meeting [with] Josh [Griffith, head writer/executive producer], and I was kind of joking with her; I was like, "That's not good!" I was just kidding around — we all go up and we all talk to Josh, so I didn't really think anything of it. But then I never heard from her, and I called her and asked [about the conversation] and she was like, "Yeah, they're killing me." But she went into the details of how and why it made sense for the storyline and everything, and she was extremely gracious about it and was ready just to do her very best work. So, we essentially found out together. And, you know, you just have to trust that the writing gods know what's best and are going to give you the best storyline to work with.
Digest: What was your initial reaction to the idea of Heather's death?
Graziadei: After Vail explained it to be, what Josh had essentially related to her on his thoughts of what was going to be happening, it did make sense to me [from a dramatic perspective]. And I think maybe that is why she was extremely gracious about it and why she still continued to show up every day and give it 120%.
Digest: Presuming that Heather is indeed dead dead and that this signals the end of this relationship you've played with Vail on the show, can you reflect for me a little bit about what it was like to work with her this go-round? You didn't work together a ton when you were on the show before.
Graziadei: No, you're right, but she was always a friend, you know? She was a friend from when she first got on the show and we met and we were all around the same age group, and there was a fun kind of core group of us that would see each other on weekends and hang out outside of work, as well. And she was part of that. So it was really, really great to reconnect with her and have her come back and to be working with her again. And, you know, it's a bummer when you hear the news that you're no longer going to get the chance to see that person on a daily basis and work with them.
JPI
The Way We Were: Graziadei and Vail Bloom as Daniel and Heather back in 2008.
Digest: What we've seen play out this far is, I imagine, just the tip of the iceberg of all of the dramatic ramifications and implications of Heather's death and how she died and so on. But in terms of playing out Daniel initially finding out that this had happened, what stands out about those scenes?
Graziadei: Well, it's easy to kind of take directly from life, you know? Almost like life imitating art, art imitating life, because that's the end for that character, that's the end for your scenes [with your co-star]. I definitely feel like that played a part in it. But I don't know where I'm drawing from, to be completely honest! It's just basically day by day, trying to figure these things out because I've never had to deal with that [kind of loss] personally. It's one of those things where you just have to try and put yourself in that person's shoes and feel it out from there. I know we've all dealt with loss, but loss of a partner like that, I obviously have not dealt with.
Digest: So, Daniel is not only grappling with the shock of losing Heather, but he also has a young daughter in the mix. Where do you think Daniel's mind is at when it comes to trying to be a source of support and guidance for Lucy while he is also reeling emotionally?
Graziadei: I think that's the dilemma, right? You want to be strong for that person, for your child, for whoever else is there, but you're almost not grieving yourself [to be strong for others]. I think that Josh and the writers did a really great job of showing exactly that, as Daniel's kind of coming to terms with stuff and he's having to break the news to everybody else — you know, the phone calls to Paul, telling his daughter —and then it's not until he's got a moment alone that it really just kind of takes over.
Digest: Another complicating factor, and a big one, is that Daniel has fallen under suspicion as possibly being responsible for Heather's death.
Graziadei: Right, and those allegations and everything that's coming up against him ... I mean, what does a parent do in that situation? I think, regardless of the denials and wanting to get ahead of whatever the charges are and be like, "I clearly didn't do this, I could never do anything like this," first and foremost, you want to protect your child from any of that.
Digest: How would you describe where Daniel's head is when he first starts to catch on to the fact that he's under suspicion?
Graziadei: I think that that's probably the last thing that he was expecting, you know? I think Daniel is alone of those level-headed people where [he feels like] "the truth will come out, the truth will come out." He does have this calm that he is able to maintain, somewhat, through it.
Digest: Then when this story started to take shape, with Sharon targeting Daniel as someone who needed to pay for what happened to Cassie all those years ago, were you intrigued by the idea of revisiting a tale you played out nearly 20 years ago?
Graziadei: I mean, of course. It's fun to revisit those storylines, and I think you never know what the ramifications are going to be of any event in a person's life on their mental state at any given period of time. But I feel like they've continued to hint at it ever since I got back [to the show in 2022], and even before that; I remember when Daniel first met [Cassie's twin] Mariah [when the actor visited in 2016], and was taken aback by her appearance because of the resemblance, obviously. But I think it makes sense and that it's an interesting subject to broach and take on. With everything that's going on with Sharon, it was kind of a perfect storm.
Digest: Daniel doesn't have all the information the audience has about just how deep Sharon's psychological troubles are running these days. But was he alarmed at all by the intense reaction she had after the car accident involving Summer and Faith?
Graziadei: And how she was coming at Daniel's family? Well, like I said, I feel Daniel always seems to be level-headed in situations like this. Personally, what I found — and I tried to convey this through the story — is that he was constantly trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. Now, for, I don't know, two months, Daniel and Heather were talking about, "We really need to stay away from Sharon!" Yet somehow, we always seemed to wind up back at the coffeehouse that Sharon owns, and lo and behold, we were running into Sharon again!
Digest: Well, Michael, to that I say, have you ever tried to get a decent latte anywhere else in town?
Graziadei ( laughs ) : Yeah. Society only serves martinis, I guess! We've actually joked about that on set. We're like, "They must have the best freakin' coffee!"
Digest: Do you think it's anywhere on his radar that Sharon could be the one behind this?
Graziadei: I think that he is still constantly giving her the benefit of the doubt. He doesn't want to believe that it could be her, no matter what the circumstances may be.
Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Public Enemy: Sharon (Sharon Case, r.) has been gunning for revenge against Graziadei's Daniel. Also pictured: Reylynn Caster as Faith and Joshua Morrow as Nick.
Digest: When the walls begin to close in on Daniel as the police start to get more fodder to support the idea that Daniel was involved in Heather's death, does he begin to lose faith in this "the truth will come out" mantra? Is it scary or unnerving at all?
Graziadei: For Daniel, it is 100 percent unnerving. I think it is 100 percent terrifying because he knows that he didn't do anything. It's not like he's just trying to get out of this. And one has to wonder, who would want to do something like this and who would want to frame him for something like this? And then on top of that, he has to be completely terrified that he's going to wind up losing his daughter all over again. I mean, not only has the person that he loves been taken away from him, but now, the potential is there for him to lose the rest of his family, as well.
Digest: Does Daniel feel like he has. anyone on his side here, anyone he can turn to and rely on? Or does he feel alone in trying to cope with all of this madness?
Graziadei: Yeah, Daniel can rely on his mother. He can always rely on his mother. She always saves him from everything [ laughs ] — "saves" in air quotes!
Digest: Is Daniel at all reluctant for Phyllis to get involved here, with her own special brand of problem-solving?
Graziadei: Daniel is 100 percent reluctant for Phyllis to get involved. However, he knows if there's anybody in town that he can rely on and has his back, it's his mother and his sister. His family. That doesn't mean he wants them involved!
Digest: For you as an actor, are you more jazzed driving into work on a day where you have to play angst and grief and uncertainty and all of the things this story is bringing into Daniel's life versus a day where the action is a little more static or has lower stakes?
Graziadei: Yeah, but there also could be a little more anxiety, I think, because I'm always in my own head about everything, you know? "What am I gonna do? I'm only gonna get one take on this. Is it gonna be good enough?" But there lies the game of just trusting yourself in the end. I'm excited when I have stuff like this to do because I'm not just siting around and filling the air with dialogue for, you know, any set of given reasons. I've had something to do recently on the show and I really appreciate that they've been writing that for me.... Daniel's not having fun, but Michael is!
Digest: How do you imagine all of this will affect Daniel moving forward — presuming, of course, that he doesn't end up with a 30-year sentence in the Wisconsin penitentiary system.
Graziadei: I honestly don't know. I honestly am taking it one episode at a time and seeing kind of where the trajectory is going, because I'm saying right now, "Daniel will never forgive the person that is responsible for this in a million years," and six months from now, I could be married to that person!
Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Hot Pursuit: Just as Sharon planned, Chance's (Conner Floyd) investigation into Heather's death is leading him straight to Daniel.
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