A villain returns and a new son has been cast on The Young and the Restless.

Check out the latest comings and goings casting news from The Young and the Restless. Find out if any popular stars from yesteryear are boarding the show this week or in the near future, if any newcomers are joining the soap in contract, recurring, or day-player roles, or if any of your favorite actors or actresses are leaving the CBS drama.

Key Takeaways

• Ray Wise is back as Ian Ward, reigniting Mariah’s trauma storyline.
• Ian’s return directly impacts Mariah as the cult leader resurfaces in scenes airing January 27.
• Ethan Ray Clark officially takes over as Dominic, stepping into the role of Abby and Devon’s son.
• Melissa Ordway continues appearing more frequently as Abby following her 2025 contract downgrade.

The Week of January 26, 2026

Ray Wise returns as the evil Ian Ward. The former cult leader continues to haunt Camryn Grimes’ Mariah on Tuesday, January 27. Grimes recently shared her thoughts about working with the veteran actor.

Ethan Ray Clark has taken over the role of Dominic Winters, Abby (Melissa Ordway), and Devon’s (Bryton James) son. The daytime newcomer, who replaced Rainn and River Ware, debuted in the role last week.

Melissa Ordway is back as Abby Newman Winters. She shares scenes with her TV hubby and son, the aforementioned James and Clark, on Tuesday, January 27. Ordway, who was taken off contract by the CBS soap in 2025,  has been getting more screen time of late.

The Young and the Restless (Y&R) spoilers update for the week of January 26-30 reveals that Devon Winters (Bryton James) and Abby Winters (Melissa Ordway) will have to make a 911 call while Claire Newman (Hayley Erin) and Kyle Abbott (Michael Mealor) face a decision.

Nate Hastings (Sean Kanan) will also rescue Victoria Newman (Amelia Heinle) from a flood of concerns, so let’s discuss what’s ahead on Y&R.

The week will begin with Sienna Bacall’s (Tamara Braun) insistence that she should head back to Los Angeles.

Noah Newman (Lucas Adams) will suggest he could go with her and run The Shadow Room, but Sienna may argue that he belongs there with his family.

While Sienna and Noah bicker about the future, Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) will leave Victoria out of the loop on his next move.

That’ll add to the frustration Victoria’s already dealing with when it comes to her family’s crumbling business.

Fortunately, Nate will save Victoria from drowning in this sea of anger, pain and fear.

When Victoria needs someone to lean on, Nate will be there to help.

After Victor threatens Cane Ashby (Billy Flynn) and Phyllis Summers (Michelle Stafford), Nick Newman (Joshua Morrow) and Sharon Newman (Sharon Case) will go after Phyllis next.

Sally Spectra (Courtney Hope) will also speak with Billy Abbott (Jason Thompson) about Jill Abbott’s (Jess Walton) latest heart crisis, which Sally will learn about from Snapper Foster (last played by David Hasselhoff).

Will that news sway Billy’s opinion when it comes to whether he should move forward with this Chancellor pursuit?

Whatever the case, Sally may make a formal job offer to Audra Charles (Zuleyka Silver) despite Jill’s previous worries about hiring her.

Audra will also become a target if Kyle and Claire’s alliance against her gets back on track.

Claire and Kyle will have a choice to make, so they may stick with their previous plan despite their post-breakup awkwardness.

As for Abby and Devon, they’ll deal with Dominic Winters’ (Ethan Ray Clark) disappearance and all the chaos that comes with it.

Devon and Abby will have to call the police at some point to report Dominic missing, so that’ll lead to Detective Burrow (Matt Cohen) pitching in.

Of course, Mariah Copeland (Camryn Grimes) will move forward with the strange plot this Ian Ward (Ray Wise) vision has talked her into.

Y&R spoilers say Mariah will kidnap Dominic and drive off with him, but it’s possible she’ll be spotted on security footage at some point.

Once Victor orders Adam to make Cane believe Lily Winters (Christel Khalil), Charlie Ashby (previously played by Noah Alexander Gerry) and Mattie Ashby (previously played by Lexie Stevenson) are in harm’s way, Adam will give Chelsea Lawson (Melissa Claire Egan) updates

Chelsea may take that info to Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott) next and alarm her, even if they both know Victor would never truly hurt Lily and the twins.

Adam’s going to change his mind about something in the coming episodes, so he might go rogue and handle this “kidnapping” situation his own way.

Instead of actually doing it, maybe Adam can get Lily, Charlie and Mattie to help him manipulate Cane.

The Young and the Restless spoilers say Cane and Victor will continue to make bold moves against each other, so stay tuned.