“The Young and the Restless” has shaken things up with the revelation that Malcolm (Shemar Moore) is Holden’s (Nathan Owens) father, making him Lily’s (Christel Khalil) half-brother. It was part of the twist that brought Moore back to the CBS soap along with Vivica A. Fox. Khalil has teased the fallout of the sibling news and revealed a storyline that was scrapped because of it.
Christel Khalil Talks Lily & Holden Being Siblings on ‘The Young and the Restless’
Speaking with Soap Opera Digest, Khalil admitted she was thrilled to learn that Holden was part of the Winters family.
“I love Nathan so much and it’s so fun to work with him. To have it be Nathan, it couldn’t have been any better,” she expressed to the outlet.
While Khalil was happy with the development, the same can’t be said for her alter ego, Lily. The actress admitted that things are very awkward between Holden and Lily when they first learn of their family connection.
After all, they haven’t had much interaction, and what they have had was pretty tense. Khalil promises the awkward phase won’t last too long, and a bond will form between the new siblings.
“You start to see them on the journey of, ‘Oh, wow, you’re actually a good person. Maybe I judged you too harshly and I’m seeing a different side of you.’ They kind of start coming together and really developing a little friendship, which is really fun to see. I think the journey of this is really interesting,” the soap star spilled.
That wasn’t the only detail Khalil shared about the new storyline, making Lily and Holden siblings.
One Storyline Was Scrapped To Give Holden A Winters Family Connection
In the interview, Khalil confirmed that once upon a time, Holden and Lily were deemed to be a couple on the show. The writers initially planned to have a romance between the duo after seeing the chemistry between Owens and Khalil.
It was intended to be a side story that would lead to drama with Lily’s newly resurfaced ex-husband Cane (Billy Flynn) before Khahlil went on maternity leave with her third child. However, all of that changed when Executive Producer and Head Writer Josh Griffith got the idea to make them siblings and expand the Winters family.
Khalil’s happy the writers chose to go the sibling route instead of the romance route. It’s not only more exciting to play, but there’s a lot more story that can be told now that Lily and Holden are siblings.
The impact won’t just be on them either. Lily’s brother Devon (Bryton James) reels from the shocking news, too. It also leaves another door open for Moore and Fox to pop back up in Genoa City.
