How ‘The Young And The Restless’ Will Handle Kristoff St. John’s Death

Both fans and members of the cast and production team behind CBS’ “The Young and the Restless” were stunned when news broke Feb. 4 that actor Kristoff St. John has passed away the day before at the age of 52. Now, some are wondering how the actor’s groundbreaking character will be honored on the daytime soap opera.

A rep for CBS confirmed to International Business Times via email that St. John’s final episode portraying Neil Winters will air on Wednesday, Feb. 6. As of press time, it was unclear whether the final appearance would simply be part of the previously scheduled episode or if the character’s move off-canvas would be addressed.

In addition, the soap is going to air a special tribute to St. John during the episode scheduled to air on Friday, Feb. 8.

St. John’s Neil was one of four core black characters introduced to the CBS soap in the 1990s, which helped “Young and the Restless” became more popular with black audiences. St. John attributed that popularity to how the show was writing these characters in a 2008 interview with Jet Magazine, stating that it was refreshing to audiences and the actors alike that these characters weren’t being seen in a stereotypical light.

“The show doesn’t use the old African-American stereotypes that we have been seeing on TV, like the hustler, the pimp, the drug dealer. We have come a long way,” he said at the time.

Though his co-star, Victoria Rowell, who portrayed love interest Drucilla, later left the show in 2007, St. John remained on contract, and saw his storyline grow alongside characters like his adopted son, Devon (Bryton James), and daughter, Lily (Christel Khalil), and even saw the addition of another love interest, Hilary Curtis (Mishael Morgan). All three actors took to social media to share emotional tributes to their co-star following news of his death.

While James swore he would “never stop making you proud,” and Morgan, who left the show in 2018, shared an anecdote about how they shared the same birthday, Khalil addressed the struggles St. John was dealing with off-screen in her post, acknowledging that he had been struggling since his son Julian died from suicide in 2014.

“I’m thankful you’re not in pain anymore, such a deep pain that no one could understand. No parent should have to bury their child, I’m sorry you had to,” she wrote as part of her tribute. “I’m sorry you’ve been hurting so much...You were one of a kind.”

St. John was found unresponsive in his home in the San Fernando Valley on Sunday, and it is believed that alcohol may have contributed to his death. An official cause of death has been deferred by the medical examiner pending the results of a toxicology report.

He is survived by his ex-wife, Mia St. John, and their daughter, Paris, as well as his daughter Lola from his marriage to Allana Nadal. He is also survived by his fiancée, Kseniya Mikhaleva.