The Young and the Restless' Nathan Owens gets back to his roots

Next week on The Young and the Restless, newcomer Nathan Owens’ character, Damian King, is about to make a big move to another new town: Genoa City. But in real life this week, the actor got back to his roots.

Nathan Owens of The Young and the Restless

Actor Nathan Owens is one of the newest cast members of The Young and the Restless. Although viewers have had just a brief introduction, his character, Damian King, is moving to Genoa City next week and is sure to stir things up for the Hamilton-Winters families.

The actor appeared on the hometown morning news show this week, Good Day Sacramento, to talk about his new role and his career. Co-hosts John Dabkovich, Courtney Dempsey, and Cody Stark had plenty of questions for Owens.

Dabkovich noted that they have had other Y&R stars on their show before, and they noted how daunting it was to be in one of their first scenes with “the great Victor Newman,” played by Eric Braeden. He wondered if Owens had the same experience. Nathan confirmed that while he hadn’t yet had that opportunity, he had been in scenes with some other major characters but didn’t want to give too much away.

Nathan Owens in a music video

Owens shared that his first soap opera experience was on Days of our Lives in 2012. He left the show in 2013 and went on to other roles, such as Devious Maids. Owens laughed when he was asked about his first acting gig: a music video with Rihanna. He explained that he played a sad boyfriend in the video for the song "California King Bed" and said it was cool to work with her as she was awesome and nice. They joked that it was the “best longest day of work.”

Owens explained that the daily schedule at The Young and the Restless is fast-paced, and they shoot everything very quickly. He added that they are always a few steps ahead of what we see on TV.

Courtney Dempsey pointed out that Owens was from the area, growing up in the Natomas neighborhood of Sacramento. They invited him and his family to come to the studio for a tour and meet everyone when he was in town as he was doing the interview by video call. Dempsey asked what Owens’ favorite restaurants in town were. He suggested Fixins on Broadway and Mikuni, a sushi restaurant in midtown Sacramento. The cohosts joked that now they knew where he’d be taken to lunch when he visited the studio.

You can watch Nathan Owens make his Genoa City arrival on The Young and the Restless weekdays on CBS or stream live or on-demand on Paramount Plus.