MORGAN OBENREDER ON Y&R RETURN
■ It’s been almost five years since Morgan Obenreder last appeared on Y&R as Tessa’s troubled little sister, Crystal, which is why her portrayer was surprised — well, sort of — when the show contacted her about coming back. “It was just a random Thursday morning when I got an email,” the actress shares. “For a little bit I thought it was a joke, but luckily it wasn’t. Of course, I said yes immediately. It’s funny, I’ve always followed Y&R on Instagram and I saw that Mariah and Tessa were engaged and I was so excited. I was like, ‘Oh, my God, what a beautiful thing for life and my sister to be getting married.’ I even told my boyfriend, ‘I wonder if Crystal will make it to the wedding,’ and then two days later, I got the call and I thought, ‘Wow, that’s a crazy sort of universal intervention or something.’ ”
Her first day back, Obenreder says, “was like going home. When I walked into the building, I remembered all of the wonderful smells. Then I was like, ‘How is it that so much time has passed?’ I was so excited to see everyone, but also excited to meet and say hi to the new people who’ve been brought on since the last time I was here. The environment is still very welcoming, and there’s such a great energy.”
Obenreder reports that the highlight of her day was reconnecting with former co-stars. “Cait [Fairbanks] and I were both masked up and we might’ve been breaking the [Covid] rules when we gave each other a really big hug,” she adds. “We have a very easy rapport and I do feel like she’s my sister in some way. I also bumped into Melissa Ordway [Abby] and we checked in with each other. When I first came onto the show, she already had one daughter and she just announced that she was pregnant. She had her baby before I left, so her family was a big part of my Y&R experience.”
If her schedule permits, Obenreder will be happy to reprise her character whenever needed. “Like I recently learned, you never know what happens in Genoa City and it seems like there’s always adventures,” she points out. “I had a wonderful time and would love to come back.”