Lily Brooks O'Briant Returns as Lucy Romalotti on The Young and the Restless

Lily Brooks O'Briant returns as Lucy Romalotti on the Friday, November 13 episode of The Young and the Restless. The CBS soap is bringing the character home from boarding school, and the show's official Instagram account teased the return with a photo of the actress on set holding a Genoa City Athletic Club plate. The caption read: "Guess who's back in Genoa City?"

Who is Lucy Romalotti?

O'Briant took over the role in February 2023. Lucy is Daniel Romalotti's (Michael Graziadei) daughter and the granddaughter of Phyllis Summers (Michelle Stafford) and Danny Romalotti (Michael Damian). Her last appearance came on December 20, 2024, when she helped her father decorate for Christmas while they shared memories of the recently murdered Heather Stevens (Vail Bloom), who had helped Daniel raise her.

"I really enjoy diving into Lucy's emotions and kind of figuring out where her head is at," O'Briant told Soap Opera Digest in 2024.

What does the return coincide with?

Lucy's comeback aligns with the first week of material from the soap's new head writers, Jamey Giddens and Dan O'Connor, whose first script airs Wednesday, November 11. The duo told TV Insider what viewers can expect over the holiday season in Genoa City: "We're bringing Lucy back a few times and giving a teaser of what's been going on with her life. She's getting ready for college, and then maybe by spring, summer, we can explore more of that."

The takeaway: the new writing team is using a familiar younger character to seed storylines well into next year.

What has O'Briant done since leaving?

Since her December 2024 exit, O'Briant has kept busy across streaming and network projects:

• Appeared on the Netflix dark comedy Bad Thoughts
• Played the lead role of Luna in the mini-series In Love with Mr. Mafia
• Starred alongside Melissa Joan Hart in the Lifetime movie Killing the Competition

Her return also reunites her with on-screen father Michael Graziadei for new father-daughter scenes. With Giddens and O'Connor planning to "explore more" of Lucy's life by spring or summer, the November 13 episode marks the start of an arc rather than a one-off visit.