Amanda Sinclair is a fictional character in one of the longest-running American daytime TV series in the history of television, “The Young and the Restless.” Her first appearance in the series caused a huge stir, because she had an uncanny resemblance to Hilary Curtis, who was one of the impactful characters killed-off in the show. As most soap opera plots go, Amanda turned out to be the long-lost twin sister of Hilary, but their similarities ended with their identical physical attributes and with their taste in men. Other than that, they were quite the opposite of each other.
“The Young & the Restless”
The CBS network referred to “The Young and the Restless” (“Y&R”) as one of their flagship TV series, as it continuously dominated the TV ratings in the daytime drama genre. It had been the number one soap opera for 32 years. It was created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell, and made its TV premiere on 26 March 1973. In the first few years, the storyline revolved around two families, the affluent Brooks family, and the regular working-class Foster family. However, major changes were made along with recasts in the following seasons, as the creators introduced new families such as the Williamses and the Abbotts. Some even doubted if the audience would be able to relate to new plots due to the significant shift in the narrative, but the viewers were hooked. Over the years, they added other families such as the Newmans, Barbers-Winters, Baldwin-Fishers, and the Chancellors. They also had the longest feud in TV drama, the Jill Abbott vs. Katherine Chancellor rivalry, which ultimately spanned four decades.
Today on #YR, Amanda keeps the peace between Devon and Nate. Watch all-new episodes of The Young and the Restless on @paramountplus: https://t.co/s6nwHMg9W7 pic.twitter.com/YAg2nYias2
— Young and Restless (@YandR_CBS) August 3, 2022
Top five things the fans were surprised to learn about “Y&R”
For the past 49 seasons, so many things have happened on the set, some of them truly fascinating. Here are just some of them:
Hollywood A-listers who were part of the “Y&R” cast
The over-the-top sometimes unbelievable storylines of soap operas might have attracted millions of loyal viewers around the world, but there were those who found them uncool or tacky. For this reason, they were completely shocked that some of the coolest Hollywood major stars were once involved with the show, such as Tom Selleck, David Hasselhoff, Eva Longoria and Paul Walker. These stars weren’t just there for guest appearances, but for a time were part of the regular cast.
Victor Newman wasn’t created to stay long in the series
Loyal fans of the daytime series couldn’t believe it when it was revealed that the character of Victor Newman wasn’t meant to stay that long in the drama series; it was created just to push certain dramatic narratives in the plot; the writers definitely didn’t anticipate that the character would have such an impact on the audience that it became one of the most popular. His character became synonymous with the show, and most fans would say that it wouldn’t be “Y&R” anymore if Victor Newman wasn’t part of it.
Aired its 12,000th episode – a TV milestone
For some networks, shows that lasted for 10 years were already a huge deal, but it would be an impressive feat if a TV series lasted for several decades as “Y&R” has. On 1 December 2020, it reached a rare milestone of airing its 12,000th episode on TV, just the fifth daytime series to do so in the entire US TV history. The producers celebrated this epic achievement for a week, by including many flashbacks of some of the most favorite scenes and characters in the show. Fans were delighted to watch the classic love story of the legendary ‘super couple’ Nikki and Victor Newman unfold again on their screens.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=678193813061636
Drama OST once peaked at #8 on the Billboard Charts
The theme song, “Cotton’s Dream,” which was composed by Perry Botkin Jr. and Barry De Vorzon, was originally created for the 1971 film “Bless the Beast and the Children.” It later became popularly associated with the 14-year-old Olympic gold medalist Nadia Comaneci, as ABC network used the song when they aired again her outstanding Summer Olympics performance, in which she scored the first perfect 10 in gymnastics. It was known as “Nadia’s Theme”, and was released as a single which charted at #8 on Billboard.
Actors who played Amanda Sinclair
Most characters in a long-running daytime series are mostly portrayed by several actors for various reasons, such as illness, a much-needed vacation, an accident, or contract disagreement. The role of Amanda Sinclair was portrayed by two actors – Mishael Morgan for most of the series, and Karla Mosley for a brief period in 2021.
Mishael Morgan (Sept 2019 – present)
Mishael was a Trinidadian-Canadian actress who started her career in a recurring role in the Canadian teen drama “The Best Years”, from 2008 to 2009. It was followed by a support role but as a regular cast member in the TV sitcom “Family Biz,”. She then pursued a movie career, and landed support roles in Hollywood with movies such as Kevin Spacey’s “Casino Jack” (2010) and Colin Farrell’s “Total Recall” (2012). She was seen in several American TV series too, including “Backpackers,” “Supernatural,” and “The Listeners.”
Her life changed when her big break came in 2013, as she was given the role of Hilary Curtis in “Y&R,” which she played until 2018. She could have continued playing the character, and wouldn’t have been killed off if not for unsuccessful contract negotiations between the network executives and her agent. Everyone thought it was the end of Mishael’s journey with the daytime series, so fans were surprised to see her back on the screen as the character Amanda Sinclair. For this role, she won the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 2022, and also made history by being the first black actress to win the award. She left the series briefly sometime in 2021, following an accident in which she needed emergency eye surgery for a detached retina, but returned to the set after she’d recovered.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CgPXI_Cjp96/
Karla Mosley (April 2021)
When Mishael Morgan was temporarily out of commission, the “Y&R” producers hired Karla Mosley in her place – she was seen regularly by daytime series fans in “The Bold and the Beautiful”, as the ex-con, gold digger, and social climber Maya Avant. She was also a part of the radio and TV soap opera “Guiding Light” for a year, as Christina Boudreau. Fans of “Y&R” were shocked when they saw another actress portraying the role at that time, thinking that she’d permanently replaced Mishael.
Could I have bigger, more beautiful shoes to step into? I think not…so grateful to visit #GenoaCity for a few weeks. But, fear not, the incredible @MishaelMorgan1 is on the mend and will be back soon! Thank you for such a warm welcome 💗 https://t.co/1S8135fBsg
— Karla Mosley (@karlamosley) April 16, 2021
Amanda’s birth secret journey, and finding her family in “Y&R”
The introduction of Amanda’s character in “Y&R” initially confused viewers. as well as other characters in the series. The role was portrayed by the same actress who everyone knew as the dead character Hilary Curtis. Amanda was a lawyer by profession, and was hired by Chance Chancellor to provide legal assistance on the validity of the new will that bequeathed most of Katherine Chancellor’s estate to Cane Ashby. Here are some of the highlights of how she discovered her real identity over the years she spent in the city of Genoa:
She was initially considered to be a pariah in Genoa
Due to Amanda’s striking resemblance to Hilary Curtis, who’d created so much havoc in the lives of many people in Genoa when she was still alive, they naturally didn’t want anything to do with her. Amanda’s mere presence stirred old memories that most of them wanted to stay buried. One of the most affected was Hilary’s husband, Devon Hamilton. She insisted to everyone that she wouldn’t be there too, if not for the case that she was working on at that time.
Amanda took a DNA test and started an investigation
One of Amanda’s newfound friends in Genoa, Phyllis Summers, encouraged her to start dating again, and she went out with Dr. Nathan “Nate” Oliver Hastings Jr. As the two became closer, he invited her to donate blood, and Nate discovered that she shared the same rare blood type with her look-a-like Hilary. She didn’t believe much in coincidences, so she had a DNA test done secretly, which confirmed that they were identical twins. Close friends and relatives of Hilary – most especially Devon – were curious about Amanda’s possible relationship to his late wife. Unbeknownst to them, Amanda already knew the truth, and befriended everyone close to Hilary even those who hated her departed sister, just to get more information about the family.
The truth about Amanda’s identity
Amanda discovered that Rose Turner wasn’t her biological mother, but Naya Benedict. At first she was hesitant to confront Naya, because she discovered that her mother had another daughter named Imani. Her estranged sister approached her first, and told her not to bother Naya. Imani refused to believe her claim, and thought that she was out to scam them due to Naya’s affluent family background. Mother and daughter eventually met, and Amanda found out that Rose was a distant cousin of her mother, whom they paid to take the twins. However, Rose could only take care of one child, so she raised Hilary and left Amanda on the doorstep of a fire station. Apparently, at that time Naya was still in college, and her family felt that it was the best thing for her because she was still too young to handle such a responsibility. The decision to secretly give the children away for adoption helped them avoid any scandal that would have besmirched the family’s name.
https://www.facebook.com/TheYoungandtheRestless/posts/pfbid0GH8BEKCbKnyXU74UMvkc1NpqZfke4ZgMw3VbtXmcF4SyEy4DcrjQHgztzNpZSga7l
Her real mother didn’t want Amanda in her life
The reunion was far from what Amanda imagined it would be, as her mother initially didn’t want their relationship out in the open. Naya told her that given the circumstances, they needed to keep their distance from each other. Apparently, even after decades had passed, Naya was still trying to please her family. Amanda was quite heartbroken about it, especially since her mother raised another daughter who didn’t seem any younger than her. It heightened her abandonment issues, and she berated her mother for not revealing that her twin sister had already passed away.
Imani filed a restraining order against Amanda
On the day she confronted her mother about the details surrounding her identity, Imani stopped the conversation because Naya became distraught. Imani filed a restraining order against Amanda, even if her identity was already confirmed by Naya. Her mother was quite apologetic to Amanda that her other daughter would go to such extremes, but Amanda refused to accept her explanations, saying that after all that had been said and done, her mother was still letting other people dictate to her. Even though Amanda knew she could fight the restraining order, she felt it wasn’t worth her time and effort; she didn’t want to be a part of her biological family any longer.
Hired by her mother to represent her grandfather in court
After all that happened, Amanda was surprised when her mother tried to reconnect with her. Later on, it was revealed that she wanted her to represent her grandfather, Sutton Ames, who was charged with killing her biological father, Richard Nealon. Initially, everything went well, as her grandfather finally welcomed her into the family. Even Imani, who was also a law graduate but hadn’t taken the bar exam, helped her with the legal case. However, as more secrets were revealed, Amanda set up her grandfather with the help of Victor Newman, to get to the truth of who killed Richard. They were able to record his grandfather about what he’d done to Richard and the details surrounding his death, then submitted the pieces of evidence to the District Attorney.
Amanda and her men in “Y&R”
It wouldn’t be a successful daytime series without multiple complicated relationships. Here are some of the men Amanda was involved with during her stay in Genoa:
A potential love affair with Billy Abbott
“Y&R” fans thought that Amanda would end up as Billy Abbott’s girlfriend after he helped her when she was being harassed by a drunken patron in a bar, during her first few weeks in Genoa. Something clicked between them that night, and they continued to hang out as friends. Later on, Billy started confiding in her, and asked for advice on his personal issues. When he broke off with his girlfriend, Victoria Newman, Amanda point-blank asked him if he was interested in her, which he denied. They shared a kiss later on to test the waters, but it didn’t develop into anything deeper. They were each other’s confidants, and their friendship grew stronger over the years.
AMILLY Appreciation Tweet! #YR @MyJasonThompson @MishaelMorgan1 ❤️ pic.twitter.com/LKtB7jlaMW
— Franco N (@FrancoCNac) January 25, 2021
Amanda was revealed to have an abusive ex-husband
One of the reasons why Devon and the rest of the people in Genoa couldn’t find photos and information about Amanda online when she first came to the city, was because she had them deleted off from the Internet. At that time, she was running away from Ripley Turner, her ex-husband who was physically and emotionally abusive towards her. However, Ripley tracked her down and followed her to Genoa. During a party for Victor Newman, Amanda and Victoria wore identical dresses, which led Ripley to believe that Victoria was Amanda when he arrived at the party, so it was a case of mistaken identity when Victoria was stabbed by Ripley that night. He slipped away, but it didn’t take long for him to be arrested and jailed for a long time.
Developed a romantic relationship with Devon
When Amanda confirmed that she was the twin sister of Hilary, she gravitated toward Devon, as she wanted to discover more about her sister. At that time, Elena, Devon’s girlfriend, became suspicious of the constant communication between the two. Due to her insecurity, Elena cheated on him with Nate, and then broke up with Devon, which led him to start a romantic relationship with Amanda. However, it was a complicated situation because Devon and Elena still had feelings for each other. Later on, Amanda accidentally discovered that the two were still sleeping together, when she found Elena’s bracelet on Devon’s couch, so broke-up from him.
Getting serious with Devon
Amanda and Devon got back together, with a mutual promise that they would be fully committed to making the relationship work. Devon was the sperm donor of Abby’s baby through surrogacy. When Abby had an emotional downturn period after she learned that her husband went missing overseas during an undercover mission, Devon took care of the baby, and Amanda helped him with his custody battle with the mother of the baby. Apparently, when Hilary was still alive, they lost a baby through a miscarriage, and so it was important for him to fight for the right to be the parent who would take care of the child.
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=791734914906857
Speculations on what will happen to Amanda in “Y&R” this 2022
Following several spoilers that CBS posted, viewers believe that Amanda will soon be pregnant. She and Devon might be altar-bound, since it would present a stable family vibe to the courts as Devon would continue to fight for custody of his son. About Amanda’s professional career, she had been thriving and continued winning her cases. Fans feel that a surprise baby at this time of her life would create havoc with her plans, especially since Devon would be overprotective of her due to the traumatic experience that he had with his ex-wife’s pregnancy. Then, this is a soapie, so it’s inevitable that there are more surprises to come.
