Why does Young and the Restless treat Abby as if she does not belong in the Newman or Abbott family?

Meet Abby Newman from the beginning

On The Young and the Restless, Abby Newman (Melissa Ordway) is the daughter of Victor Newman (Eric Braeden) and Ashley Abbott (Eileen Davidson), who stole Victor's sperm donation and had herself impregnated. Darcy Rose Byrnes originated the role as a child and remained until 2008 when the character became SORAS (Soap Opera Rapid Aging Syndrom).

Hayley Erin, who now plays Claire Grace Newman on Y&R, assumed the role in 2009. The following year, the character rapidly ages again to adulthood. This is when Emme Rylan began portraying the youngest Newman who was often treated like the proverbial red-headed stepchild. Abby was in her world, doing her own thing and not involved in the Newman family drama.

Abby is not treated like a Newman or an Abbott

Rylan portrayed the entitled rich girl during her "Naked Heiress" days but was fired in 2012 due to budget cuts. Fans complained, so The Young and the Restless rehired her in February 2013 on a recurring status. The actress later stated that she needed a full-time job, and she left the soap to join General Hospital as Lulu Spencer, which is when Ordway began portraying Abby.

The Newman clan includes Nikki Newman (Melody Thomas Scott), Victoria Newman (Amelia Heinle), Nick Newman (Joshua Morrow), and Adam Newman (Mark Grossman). Abby's siblings are always in the loop when there is danger or drama, but she is often left out or only told what happened in the aftermath.

Victor ignores his youngest child

Victor does not dote on Abby the way he does with Claire and Victoria. He also does not interfere in her personal life and try to control her as he does everyone else in his family.

She is also rarely seen at the Abbott mansion when there are family gatherings. However, Abby was front and center when Mariah Copeland (Cameron Grimes) became her surrogate and gave birth to her son Dominic (River and Rain Ware) using Devon Hamilton's (Bryton James) sperm. After that, she was always MIA whenever her father and her siblings were in trouble.

Abby is the black sheep

Abby and Devon had a lavish wedding on November 13, 2024, but later in the month, Ordway revealed that, like her predecessor, she had been taken off contract and demoted to recurring status.

Why is Abby the black sheep of the two most powerful families in Genoa City? She has not been involved in the drama with Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman), Diane Abbott (Susan Walters), and her grandpa Victor. She was not around when Ian Ward (Ray Wise) held all the Newmans at gunpoint, and Victor was shot. Abby has not even visited her father during his recovery.

Will Abby remain sidelined?

Why do the powers that be give her siblings so much screentime? Even when she is around, she does not spend time at the Abbott or Newman mansions. Nick, Vicki, and Adam worked together and spent quality time with each other when there was no fighting. Is Abby even aware that her cousin Kyle Abbott (Michael Mealor) is dating her niece Claire?

However, Ordway is not sitting around waiting for the powers to come to their senses. She is already involved in several other projects.

Fans of The Young and the Restless hope there will be more scenes with Devon and Abby, who are still newlyweds, but it doesn't look like that will happen. Devon has been spending time with Lily Winters (Christel Khalil) and Nate Hastings ( Sean Dominick), but no scenes with his wife. Be on the lookout for updates related to Abby Newman and what Melissa Ordway will do next.