Interview: Power Play at Restless Style Magazine

Sharon Case knew going in that it would be difficult for Jack, Sharon, Nick and Phyllis to all play nice when they decided to start a magazine together. Sharon Case, who has played Sharon Abbott on “The Young and the Restless” since 1994, says that’s all part of the fun for her as an actress. “That’s what we’re hoping for, is conflict. You put these characters together in situations they normally wouldn’t be in together, and it’s fun to see what happens.”

The two couples didn’t go into this blind: They knew they were going to have their troubles working together, but as Sharon tells me: “They were hoping for the best with the conflicts they knew existed. But those conflicts didn’t outweigh the idea of creating the magazine. They can see the positive points of their partnership, even though Sharon and Phyllis do not get along. Sharon looks forward to spending time with Nick and with Jack.”

Eventually, though, someone is going to have to come out on top. And Sharon says when that time comes, there will be fireworks. “There are lots of conflicts coming up -- not only between Sharon and Phyllis, but also between Nick and Jack, and even Sharon and Jack.”

The Sharon and Jack conflict could have something to do with Jack’s need for vengeance. Nick and Phyllis just wrote an unflattering article, into which Phyllis injected some juicy tidbits about Sharon (unbeknownst to Nick). When Jack and Sharon find out, the claws will come out.

“Obviously, Sharon and Jack don’t like the article,” Sharon explains. “Jack retaliates by doing another interview. Sharon doesn’t want to keep going back and forth, especially using the magazine for personal vendettas. She just wants it to stop.”

Many fans of “Y&R” have a distinct opinion about the couples. There is a large contingency who want Phyllis and Jack back together, and want Sharon with Nick again. Sharon is flattered when she hears about the passion the show’s fans feel for the characters.

“I’m glad there are those who feel that way. If there weren’t, then they wouldn’t care so much about the current story line. The conflict wouldn’t be there, and no one would want to watch.

“I also think this is something that we all can relate to: being with one person that you love, and longing to be with another who you’ve loved longer and who really is your soul mate. It’s a tragic love story.”

But that is not to say that Sharon 
doesn’t love Jack. “She stays with Jack because she does love him -- that’s the bottom line. She could have gone with Brad; she could have gone it alone. He picked her up out of the low place she was at after her marriage broke up. Sharon sees Jack as a great security to her and Noah.”

Because of Noah, Nick will always have a place in her life. “Nick and Sharon really are soul mates. She never wanted her marriage to end; she never stopped caring. She never stopped loving him; it was circumstance that caused them to part.”

Everything that Sharon has gone through has helped her to grow into the woman she is now. “I’m glad she went through all that she has,” Sharon says. “She has matured and changed. It has been really fun to see her morph and change with the years.”

In the years to come, Sharon Case will still be excited to play her alter ego. “I try to keep her interesting even when she’s not in a front-burner story line. I’m just so glad the writers have written me so many great stories over the years, and have made Sharon who she is today.”