The Young and the Restless storyline in which Billy Abbott was first beaten up by his gambling bookie henchman and then run over by Noah Newman (Robert Adamson) marked the last time fans will see Burgess Jenkins in the role.
The actor, who wrapped his run as the popular character in November and made his final on-screen appearance last week, has officially ended his time in Genoa City with the following parting words: "Farewell GC, Thanks for the memories."
As fans may recall, Jenkins joined Y&R in June of 2014 as a recast for Emmy winner David Tom, who played the character from 1999 to 2002 and again for a brief period in 2014 after fan-favorite Billy Miller, also an Emmy winner, decided to part ways with the show. Much to fans' surprise, Jenkins chose not to renew his contract for personal reasons and made this announcement in November: "It's been a terrific time, but after a lot of thought I have made the difficult decision to leave The Young and the Restless. Commuting back and forth from the East Coast where my home and family are based has been challenging. I've had a great ride in Genoa City and I will miss our talented cast and crew tremendously. I would like to thank all of the amazing fans for their support, Jill Farren Phelps and Chuck Pratt for their excellent leadership, and everyone at Sony and CBS for this opportunity."
Jenkins' decision to leave the role of Billy opened up the opportunity for former General Hospital star Jason Thompson (ex-Patrick Drake) to step into the role. Fans can watch for his debut on Wednesday, January 13.
Fans may still get to see Jenkins in daytime, depending on where they live. The actor landed a role as a spokesperson in a commercial for the off-price furniture store, The Dump.
Are you sad to see Jenkins leave Y&R? What did you think of his portrayal of Billy Abbott? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
