Shemar Moore and Justin Hartley talk Young and the Restless and Kristoff St. John
By Sabrina Reed
![Shemar Moore & Justin Hartley On Their Road From Soaps To Primetime | Conversations Between Stars Shemar Moore & Justin Hartley On Their Road From Soaps To Primetime | Conversations Between Stars](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/shemar_moore___justin_hartley_on_their_road_from_soaps_to_primetime___conversations_between_stars-70b338df5015ee20a4dd87867fb754de.jpg)
CBS' promotion campaign "Conversations Between Stars" has produced some fun and interesting conversations as the network embraces an "Actors on Actors" interview style to entice its audience. Matlock's Kathy Bates and Elsbeth's Carrie Preston had one such chat and now S.W.A.T.'s Shemar Moore and Tracker's Justin Hartley have been paired in a talk that delved into their soap past.
For those who don't know, both actors starred on The Young and the Restless back in the day though they weren't on the daytime drama at the same time. Moore cut his teeth on the soap, it was his first professional acting job which he landed in 1994. His character, Malcolm Winters, is Neil Winter's brother and during the interview, Moore credited the late great Kristoff St. John for his guidance.
"I celebrated and then I was like 'Holy smokes, what am I going to do now? I don't even know if I'm good at this.' and all that. With that fear, I walked into the fear because my mother always told me, 'Leap and it will appear.' I went on the show and I just tried. I was scared to death but Kristoff St. John, who played my older brother Neil Winters, he was the dude on that show. And I had watched him, my friends in college had watched him and he just embraced me--figuratively and literally--and said, "You're green, but I got you. It's going to take time but you're going to learn and you're going to be great."
St. John was right, Moore was great on the show. He won a Daytime Emmy for his work in 2000 and has remained a fan favorite. He left The Young and the Restless in 2005 and furthered his legacy with the iconic TV role of Derek Morgan on Criminal Minds. Never forgetting his family in Genoa City, Moore has made guest appearances on the soap over the years, the most recent being last year when the family gathered to honor Neil at the Jazz lounge that bears his name.
Though Hartley didn't know St. John like Moore did, he did work with him and he agreed that the actor was a "beautiful soul" as Moore described him. This was back in 2014 when Hartley joined the soap playing the mysterious Gabriel who was later revealed to be Adam Newman. The character had undergone many surgeries after a horrific car accident that was used to explain the face change since viewers had been used to Michael Muhney who'd played the role for five years before he was abruptly let go from the show.
Moore jokingly referred to Hartley being a part of "the fancy family" which is very much true. While there are many great families on The Young and the Restless, the Newmans are the most wealthy and notorious particularly because of their patriarch Victor Newman, Adam's father who is a ruthless businessman and devilish schemer even when it comes to his own kids.
Hartley earned a Daytime Emmy nomination in 2016 for his work but left the show after two years to star in This is Us, the hit NBC drama where he played Kevin Pearson. Watch the full "Conversations Between Stars" talk between the stars below where Moore gives Hartley advice on being 'the man' aka the lead of a series, they discuss what it's like to be a producer and secret talents.
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