Sonja Flemming/CBS
In a surprise move, Bold and Beautiful has recast the pivotal role of Taylor Hayes with daytime vet Rebecca Budig, most recently General Hospital’s Hayden Barnes. The actress debuted at the tail end of the August 6 episode.
In an exclusive interiew with People, Budig shared how happy she is at her new soap home, gushing, “I truly get the vibe here that it’s that one in a million group of people that is just collaborative, kind, supportive and just very welcoming. So I’m excited. Really excited.”
Hunter Tylo, the show’s original Taylor, debuted in 1990 and remained with the show through 1994. She returned later that same year, and save for a break in 1996, was a fixture on B&B through 2002. The actress made a guest appearance in 2004 before coming back full-time from 2005-13. After that stint ended, she visited again in 2014, 2018 and 2019.
The show recast Taylor in 2021 with Krista Allen, best known to daytime fans for her Days of Our Lives stint as Billie Reed (1996-99). In 2023, she was taken off contract.
The character, a psychiatrist, has many critical connections to the canvas; she is Ridge’s ex-wife, Brooke’s longtime romantic rival, the mother of Steffy and Thomas, the grandmother of Kelly and Hayes (via Steffy) and Douglas (via Thomas), the mother-in-law of Finn, and shares a tortured history with Sheila (but then again, who doesn’t?).
Budig has her own long history in the world of daytime. In 1995, she got her soap start on Guiding Light as Michelle Bauer, and credits daytime legend Kim Zimmer (ex-Reva) with showing her the ropes. In 2016, she told Soap Opera Digest that Zimmer “used to call me her ‘DID,’ Diva In Development. ‘You see how I did this, DID? This is what you do!’ She was so down-to-earth and so real [and] was so, so kind to me.”
The actress exited GL in 1998 and was snapped up the following year to create the role of Greenlee Smythe on All My Children. She exited in 2005, returned in 2008, and remained with AMC through its cancellation in 2011. On AMC, her character was frenemies with Alicia Minshew’s Kendall, who was married to Zach Slater, played by Kaye, so B&B will mark an on-air reunion for the former Pine Valley residents.
After AMC, Budig’s next daytime gig kicked off in 2015, when GH cast her as Hayden. The role was originally slated to be short-term, but Budig inked a contract and remained in Port Charles through 2017. In 2019, she returned for a limited run.
CBS
Hayes, You! Rebecca Budig in her B&B debut as Taylor, which aired on August 6.
