The Young And The Restless Characters You'd Hate To Know In Real Life

Part of the appeal of daytime soaps like "The Young and the Restless" is that the drama makes whatever you're dealing with in real life look like a walk in the park. Work got you down? At least your new intern isn't your secret relative hell-bent on destroying your family legacy. Dating troubles? Whatever you're going through, it can't be as bad as whatever's going on with Jack, Diane, and Patty right now.

Whether you root for the Abbotts or the Newmans, everyone on "The Young and the Restless" has participated in some shady shenanigans. Although we love to watch the craziness unfold, living in Genoa City must be exhausting. There are no clear heroes and villains in this soap, only people we'd hate to know in real life.

Hanging around anyone who lies, backstabs, and fakes their death even one time isn't exactly our idea of fun. No matter how good-looking or wealthy they might be! Anyone in the show could earn a spot on this list, but these are "The Young and the Restless" characters we're especially glad we don't know personally.

Kyle Abbott, son of Jack and Diane Abbott, is far from the worst person on "The Young and the Restless." Even so, he is one of the most annoying characters to watch. Imagine, if you will, how much more annoying he would be to know in real life.

In his defense, Kyle's sins are few compared to those of other Genoa City citizens. He hasn't even killed anyone – he's practically a saint by soap opera standards. The biggest crime he's accused of by viewers is being, well, annoying. A Reddit user may have put it best when they wrote, "Kyle Abbott has the most punchable face on TV."

Whether he's done anything prison-worthy is moot; Kyle would still be insufferable to be around, regardless of his good points. It's hardly surprising given the amount of wealth he's grown up around, but remember how classist he was toward Audra when he was telling her to leave town? And remember how he kept chasing after Claire, even after he had kissed Audra while they were dating (and lied about it)? If his actions weren't enough, he always looks like he's planning to one-up whoever he's talking to. We'll pass.

If you know anything about Patty Williams, you know that she is NOT someone you want in your life. Patty is a tragic character who has experienced great trauma throughout her time on the show, but this doesn't mean we'd be able to tolerate her offscreen. No matter how justified she may be, at least in the realm of soap opera logic.

Once a naive girl in love, Patty was heartbroken by Jack when they entered into a sham marriage. After suffering a mental break, heartbreak, and a literal break when she was pushed down some stairs, Patty has been through a lot. She's also caused a lot of harm to other people, including attempted murder, actual murder, impersonating her psychiatrist, and kidnapping. Basically, anything you can think of that's objectively bad, Patty has done it.

Even now, Patty can't let her obsession with Jack die – though she has tried. Shockingly, no amount of blackmail or physical violence has made Jack want Patty more than he wants Diane. Aside from the crimes she's committed, nothing's more annoying than watching someone continue to pine over someone who won't give the time of day. Patty can do so much better.

A good soap opera, much like professional wrestling or a Shakespearean play, benefits from having a clear villain. One such villain in "The Young and the Restless" is Matt Clark, whose crimes planted her  firmly in that category. "I've never encountered anybody like him in my life," the character's original actor, Eddie Cibrian, told Star News in the '90s. "Nor would I ever want to."

Matt first appeared on the show in 1994 as Sharon Collins' boyfriend before she ultimately left him for Nick Newman. Originally more annoying than nefarious, Matt quickly became one of the most evil characters in the show when he raped Sharon after their breakup. He remained one of the show's villains until his onscreen death in 2001. The character returned in 2025, after somehow faking his death (he pulled out his own breathing tubes!) and living under the alias Mitch Bacall in Los Angeles.

Currently played by soap opera icon Roger Howarth, Matt's current goal is to convince the people of Genoa City that he's a changed man. That may be true, but that does not mean we'd want to stick around to find out.

Phyllis Summers is a schemer through and through. Despite that, Michelle Strafford is so charming in the role that we can't help but root for her. Even when she's done something bad enough to make both the Newmans and Abbotts unite against her, it always feels like Phyllis will get out of it somehow.

One Reddit user described Phyllis as "a breath of fresh air," and even wrote, "bet she's super fun to hang out with." Sure, the last part of that comment is probably describing Strafford and not the character she plays, but don't think for a second that Phyllis would be fun to know in real life. She has faked her death. She has tampered with multiple DNA tests to falsely convince men that they fathered children they did not. She has stolen Victor's company right out from under his nose – impressive, yes, but still underhanded.

Regardless of how entertaining she is on screen, she would be an exhausting person to know off-screen. Strafford said it best when she told "Soapy Podcast," "Phyllis is jacked up. All the time ... She's fighting for her life in every scene." No matter how charming, being around someone who's always dialed up to 100 would be too much in real life.

As the Abbott patriarch, Jack Abbott is one of the most important characters in "The Young and the Restless." In his professional life, he plays the part of a ruthless businessman, stopping at nothing to come out on top in the war against Victor Newman's Newman Enterprises. In his personal life, he's a notorious playboy, known for his cheating ways. Add all that together, and he is not someone we'd want to know personally.

In Jack's defense, he's changed a lot over the years. Peter Bergman, who has played Jack since 1989, told Soap Opera Digest that the character "was a manipulative cad" when he first stepped into the role. He's improved a lot over the years, but even Bergman admits that Jack "can be downright ugly" if he feels like he's been wronged.

As long as you stay in his good graces, Jack is probably a great person to know. But even a perceived slight could inspire him to ruin your life. Given how Jack treats people he doesn't like, we'd rather not take our chances.

Like her husband Jack, Diane has a sordid past that she's worked hard to overcome. Her character has been on the show since the 1980s – obviously, she's changed a lot in that time. But no matter how much she's tried to convince people she's a better person now, Diane still has her enemies in Genoa City. It takes a saint to forgive some crimes, and "The Young and the Restless" has a shortage of those.

Diane first got her start on the show as an aspiring supermodel who slept with Jack as leverage for a modeling career at Jabot in the '80s. Their affair famously rattled Jack's then-wife Patty Williams, who miscarried when she found the two in bed together. Diane eventually ran off to Europe, returned as a successful architect, and then proceeded to piss off every person in Genoa City. Things got so bad for Diane that she ended up faking her own death to get away from the consequences of her actions.

When she returned, she was on a mission to convince everyone she was no longer chaos incarnate. She reconciled with Jack and their son Kyle, but other Genoa City residents remain a mixed bag. Although it does seem like she's mellowed out with time, we'd still prefer to watch her story unfold from afar.

Compared to most of the characters on "The Young and the Restless," Devon Hamilton Winters has committed relatively few crimes. He hasn't even attempted to murder anyone, which is saying a lot for someone who lives in Genoa City. Viewers can often equate Devon with righteous anger, but unfortunately, this quality is what would make him annoying to know in real life.

Look, Devon is often right when he's upset at someone. Take, for example, how he feels about the whole Mariah situation. When Mariah kidnapped Dominic, Devon was understandably upset and wanted to prevent anything like that from happening again. And when it's revealed that his sister Lily went willingly with Victor instead of being kidnapped as Devon had believed, he's not happy that he didn't know that detail.

When it's written out like that, it seems like Devon's anger is justified. Fans of the show disagree, or at least don't care that his anger makes sense. One search of Devon's name reveals numerous Reddit threads detailing how annoying viewers find the character. It's clear that viewers find something about him aggravating, and that's enough to earn him a spot on this list.

Summer Newman, the daughter of Phyllis Summers and Nick Newman, is a hot mess, which means she's pretty normal by Genoa City standards. She's caused a destructive car accident, aggressively cyberbullied a classmate, and intentionally slept with her mom's boyfriend — typical stuff. When she fakes her death, then we'll talk about moving her up to the big leagues.

Jokes aside, Summer doesn't need to fake her own death to be someone we'd never want to know personally. She has a self-destructive streak and impulsive tendencies that would frustrate even the most loyal friend. Could you sit by and watch someone you knew blackmail her old fling into marrying her by withholding a liver transplant that would save said fling's current girlfriend's life? It's a convoluted scenario, but that's a plot point involving Summer on the show.

Since actor Allison Lanier left the role in 2025, Summer has yet to return to Genoa City. No character as important as Summer stays gone for long, especially when the show is already teasing her return. When that happens, we'll enjoy that knowing that she's a fictional character.

Melody Thomas Scott has been playing Nikki Newman as an original cast member on "The Young and the Restless" for over four decades. A lot can change in that amount of time, and a lot has: Nikki started out as a girl far removed from high society until her affair with Victor Newman made her a major player in Genoa City. Their affair eventually blossomed into a romance for the ages, although one that rarely sees them happy together for long.

More than her longstanding romance with Victor, Nikki is a strong, resilient character we love to watch. But that strength and resilience also make her a terror to those she doesn't see as on her side. She's killed several people (kind of; two of the three had faked their deaths – classic "The Young and the Restless") and has been involved in a number of affairs.

That's not to mention her struggles with alcoholism over the years. It's not easy to watch someone you know fall off the wagon again, no matter how much you care for them. Nikki is another character we're content to view through the screen.

Like anyone who gets caught up with the Newman family, Sharon Newman (née Collins) has been through the wringer. Sharon has survived traumatic events, but she's also caused a lot of trouble to the people of Genoa City. Whether deserved or not, the truth is that her instability and penchant for crime don't make her someone we'd like to know.

Viewers love to root for Sharon and Nick Newman's continued romance, but she's done some bad things to him over the years. In a show that loves to use adultery as a plot point, Nick's no saint himself. But Sharon's manipulating paternity test results to win back Nick was low even for "The Young and the Restless."

Of course, there's also her getting with Nick's dad, Victor. The mess is fun to watch, but can you imagine how exhausting it would be to actually know this woman? She burned Victor's ranch down in revenge after he dumped her and escaped from prison. That ain't right.

Let no one read this and think Victor Newman is a great guy. Victor Newman has been the victim of some crazy crimes in his decades on the show, but he can give as good as he gets. He built Newman Enterprises out of nothing, and he'll stop at nothing to keep his company on top.

Victor can have a sweet spot for his loved ones, but no one is safe from his scorn. Much like his nemesis Jack Abbott, Victor is not someone you want to upset. And the worst part is that he hardly needs a reason; Victor is the type to ruin you just because he can. This is a man who kidnapped his wife's affair partner and kept him in his bomb shelter. He's capable of anything.

That's not even to mention the things he's done to keep Jack, or even his own children, from encroaching on his company's territory. No, thank you. We'll watch Victor fight tooth and nail to retain his legacy, but we're glad for the distance. A villain like Victor is meant to be admired from afar.

Adam Newman spent his formative years on a ranch in Kansas, unaware that his birth father was Victor Newman. When his mother died, Adam moved to Genoa City and proved to the whole town that he was truly his father's son by wreaking as much havoc as humanly possible. Unlike his father, whose crimes stem from his hunger for power, Adam's are more sinister.

When Adam entered his villain era, he did things like torment Ashley into miscarrying his half-sibling for seemingly no reason other than to be evil. Bad writing? Perhaps. But his character history does not make us want to know Adam in any capacity. The dude was purposefully blinding himself in order to get out of prison early. This is not a man who should be out on the streets!

Adam eventually mellowed out over the years, but this is a soap opera: Anyone can be a villain if the writers so will it. Some fans complain that Adam's become boring in more recent episodes, but if this was real life, boring would be preferable. No matter what happens with his character, let's thank our lucky stars that he's not real.