It\u2019s been a life-changing week for Holden Novak on The Young and the Restless<\/a><\/em>. Not only has he discovered that Malcolm Winters (Shemar Moore<\/a>) is his biological father, but he\u2019s also learned that Malcolm needs a bone marrow transplant to help treat his aplastic anemia \u2014 dramatically raising the stakes.<\/p>\n For Holden\u2019s portrayer, Nathan Owens<\/a>, the revelation that his on-screen family was expanding came as a complete surprise. In fact, when he was called to a meeting with executive producer and head writer Josh Griffith<\/a>, he feared the worst. \u201cInitially, I was like, \u2018Oh no, I gotta pack my bags. Here it is. Here\u2019s the big firing,\u2019\u201d Owens relays.<\/p>\n Instead, Griffith delivered unexpected news. \u201cJosh said, \u2018I want you to know this before any kind of word gets out, but Vivica A. Fox<\/a> and Shemar Moore are going to come in town and be your parents,\u2019\u201d recalls the actor, who was all too aware of their star power.<\/p>\n Christine Bartolucci\/CBS<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cI was taken aback immediately,\u201d Owens adds. \u201cWith Vivica, I legitimately grew up watching her from Independence Day<\/a><\/em> to Kill Bill<\/em><\/a>, to all kinds of stuff, so I was pretty floored when I found out about that. And then, of course, Shemar Moore. I grew up seeing him throughout my whole life, and honestly, being compared to him. People were like, \u2018Oh, you look kind of like Shemar Moore,\u2019 and then sure enough, some years later, he\u2019s playing my father. It was pretty cool.\u201d<\/p>\n The twist marks a major turning point for Owens, whose character previously lacked strong ties to the canvas. \u201cNot only was it not bad news, but it was actually pushing more so into the positive than I could ever imagine and anchoring me into one of the core families of the whole show,\u201d he points out. \u201cI was hoping that they would dive into more of Holden\u2019s backstory and expand on that. I didn\u2019t realize the avenues that could go with it, and I\u2019m really glad this is the one that they picked. I was pretty amped up about it. And I was allowed to tell my mom, so I called her immediately and told her.\u201d<\/p>\n Christine Bartolucci\/CBS<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Meeting his onscreen parents only added to the overall excitement, especially when he shared his first scenes with Fox. \u201cWe fell right into it because she\u2019s one of the most warm, kind-hearted, but funny people that I know in this business,\u201d Owens praises. \u201cIf she\u2019s in the room, there\u2019s a gravity around her. We started joking right off the bat, and I kind of have that relationship with my actual mom as well, where we joke around, so it was an easy transition for both of us to jump into that mother-son mode. She made it very easy. And then she\u2019s a hard worker. She\u2019s a blast.\u201d<\/p>\n His first encounter with Moore was just as seamless. \u201cI went up to him right as soon as I saw him, and we spoke for a little bit,\u201d Owens shares. \u201cHe was the lead on a show [S.W.A.T<\/em>.<\/a>] that one of my really good friends was on [David Lim<\/a>], so we had that rapport immediately through him. And he\u2019s from the Bay Area, too, so we bonded over that. He was super cool and went above and beyond to say specifically that he\u2019s just happy to see that I\u2019m doing really well and wishes me all the best.\u201d<\/p>\n On screen, however, Holden\u2019s journey is far more complicated as he processes his mother\u2019s revelation. \u201cHolden had always grown up without a father, and for him, that was a lot,\u201d Owens notes. \u201cNow there is a man out there that\u2019s his biological father and potentially could fill that void that he\u2019s had his whole life, and it\u2019s a lot for him to take on. He\u2019s kind of sifting through that, not to mention the lie that his mother told him to begin with. So, there\u2019s mixed emotions for Holden. It\u2019s a lot for him to digest, and then on top of that, he\u2019s being asked by his mother to go above and beyond to try to help this man and save him from potentially dying.\u201d<\/p>\n Adding to the emotional complexity is Holden\u2019s sudden connection to the Winters family, with whom he shares a rocky history. \u201cHolden didn\u2019t start off on the best foot with Lily [Winters, Christel Khalil<\/a>] and Devon [Winters, Bryton James<\/a>], and it\u2019s been a little bit turbulent,\u201d Owens points out. \u201cSo now the shift into being family members and trying to establish a new relationship with all these people is a bit overwhelming for Holden at this moment. He\u2019s in the process of trying to make these bridges, trying to figure out how to cultivate a relationship with them, especially Lily being his blood sister.\u201d<\/p>\n Christine Bartolucci\/CBS<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Vivica](\"https:\/\/www.tvinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/young-and-the-restless-vivica-a-fox-shemar-moore-380x570.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"Christel](\"https:\/\/www.tvinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/christel-khalil-shemar-moore-yr-855x570.jpg\")
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