Young & Restless Exclusive: On His 20th Anniversary as Devon, Bryton James Tells All About How He Landed in Genoa City
It’s hard to believe that 20 years ago — on June 1, 2004 — Bryton James made his first appearance on The Young and the Restless. Devon Hamilton had arrived in Genoa City and the Winters family was never the same. His early storylines were filled with heartache, drama, and angst, but James always delivered the spectacle that daytime audiences were clamoring for. What’s wild to think is that his Hollywood career could have gone in a much different direction — let’s call it a sliding doors moment!
James recalled the day that changed his life forever with Soaps.com with not one, but two, major auditions. “I remember that day I had a Coca-Cola commercial, a national commercial, and an audition for a soap opera,” he shares. “I really wanted the commercial because I knew they paid well. And I thought, I was 17, so what did a soap opera want with a kid?” Little did he know that The Young and the Restless would have a juicy storyline waiting for that 17-year-old kid — one that would eventually land him two Daytime Emmys.
“I knew I did a good job [during The Young & the Restless screen test]. I felt the most confident after the first audition I had for Y&R with our casting director, Marnie Saitta,” James divulges. “But I will never forget that, in the middle of the audition, the casting director stopped the scene — midway through — and said, ‘Finally, someone who reads this role the way it’s meant to be read,’ ” His talent was recognized right away, and James says, “It gave me all the confidence in the world.”
The role just might have been destined for him, because his screen test partner just happened a former Family Matters guest star, Christel Khalil. (She was on the eighth episode of the eighth season titled “Karate Kids.”) He had last seen her when they were “nine and ten years old” and now, The Young and the Restless was asking them to do four scenes together. If that wasn’t enough, his studio teacher Linda Stone from his over 11 years on the ABC sitcom, was now in that same position on CBS daytime show. If that wasn’t the universe telling James that he was officially home!
James now gets to be a part of the legacy that the Bell family created 51 years ago, one that he “will never stop trying to make this place proud.” Happy 20th anniversary, Bryton James!
