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The character of Cole Howard was last seen as a young man in The Young and the Restless in 1993-99 before he was reintroduced on November 21, 2023. It was played by a young J Eddie Peck till 1999. The soap recently announced that the actor will return to reprise an older version of the character, leaving newly inducted fans to wonder about Cole Howard’s origin.
Initially, the child Cole was played by N.P. Schoch in 1980-81 when he was introduced by his mother, Eve Howard, to Victor Neuman as Victor’s son. The American soap opera is ready to bring back the character into the storyline and has the same actor portraying the role, adding to the authenticity of the character for longtime viewers.
The recent turn of events in The Young and the Restless shows some bizarre behavior of Claire, Nikki Neuman’s assistant, towards Nikki. Since Claire’s introduction into the show, fans could guess something wrong with the character and expected a justification for putting her in the cast ensemble. This article will explore the role of Cole Howard and his relation to Claire.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed are solely of the author. Individual opinions may vary. The article may contain spoilers for The Young and the Restless. Reader's discretion is advised.
Cole Howard of The Young and the Restless is Eve Howard’s son
Cole Howard’s story started long before he was born. Just before the 1980s, Victor Neuman cheated on his wife with his secretary, Eve Howard. While attempting first to kill Victor and later kill his bride-to-be, Nikki, Eve was sent to a sanatorium. She fled from the facility to Europe with some Rick Daros.
Eve Howard delivered a child named Charles, who she claimed to be Victor’s son. While Victor wanted to provide for his son, whom Eve claimed went by his middle name, Cole. Both Cole and his mother were gone for more than a decade.
In 1993, The Young and the Restless reintroduced the character with Eve and Cole arriving in Genoa City to contact Victor Neuman. However, Victor was presumed dead, though he was in Kansas at the time, and Victor’s widow, Nikki, offered Cole a job on the ranch.
Cole, an aspiring novelist, worked as a stable hand when Nikki’s daughter, Victoria, started taking an interest in him. While Victoria was freshly rebuffed by Ryan McNeil, her romantic interest was not encouraged by Cole, who began an affair with the mother, Nikki.
Later on, The Young and the Restless showed both the youngsters falling for each other and deciding to elope and get married, and Eve wanted to stop them. However, having had a stroke and going into a coma, she was unable to prevent the marriage between the perceived siblings. Victor returned from Kansas around this time and forced an annulment of the wedding.
After Eve’s death, letters from her belongings forced Victor to doubt the parentage of Cole Howard. Paternity tests confirmed that Victor was not Cole’s father, and Victoria and Cole remarried. While Cole and Victoria tried to keep their marriage intact, Ashley Abbot took advantage of Victoria’s long absences from home by getting close to Cole.
The marriage between Victoria and Cole fell apart when Victoria was pregnant. Cole stayed close to her during the operative birth of the child due to Victoria’s health complications. However, the infant, whom Victoria had named Eve after Cole’s mother, did not survive.
After more tug-of-war romantic drama between Ashley, Cole, and Victoria, Cole divorced Ashley and moved to Oxford, taking up the position of a professor at the university. With Cole returning to The Young and the Restless after so many years, there has to be a context. And the context could be Claire, whose background seems shady, as is her hatred for Nikki Neuman.
The plot of The Young and the Restless further down the line will reveal Claire’s true identity and the reasons behind her unusual behavior. It will also give an insight into her connection to Cole Howard.
What is Claire up to on The Young and the Restless?
The last few months of The Young and the Restless have shown Claire behaving oddly. Initially, she was found staring at the Neuman family photographs or catching up with old news about the family.
Things took a nasty turn when Claire convinced Nikki to fly with her to her Great Aunt Jordan’s place on the way to surprise her sister Casey. Moreover, she persuaded the boss to step inside the house to meet the old lady and have tea.
Next, fans know that Nikki’s tea was laced with drugs, and she was locked in a room. While Claire captured Nikki when she tried to flee, this time around, Claire sedated the woman and put her IV drip of Vodka.
In a chilling scene after that, the old Great Aunt Jordan met Claire on her way out to Genoa City, warning the young woman against going soft on her since they were close to their goal. It is as yet unclear who Jordan or Claire might be, with fans guessing Claire to be the dead daughter of Victoria and Cole and Jordan being the sister of Eve.
Who are the actors playing Claire, Jordan, and Cole in The Young and the Restless?
Claire Grace, Nikki’s cheerful and enigmatic assistant, is portrayed by Hayley Erin. Hayley had been part of the show more than a decade ago when she played the child Abby Neuman. The actor has been doing a commendable representation of the grey character of Claire.
To the surprise of The Young and the Restless fans, actor Colleen Zenk was seen playing the Great Aunt Jordan. In November this year, the show announced the return of Cole Howard and delighted fans by casting J Eddie Peck back into the role.
Catch up on The Young and the Restless on CBS on weekdays as more drama surrounding Nikki, Cole, Claire, and Jordan unfolds.
