Eric Braeden Brings Victor Newman to ‘Beyond the Gates’ in Landmark Soap Crossover June 9

Victor Newman is leaving Genoa City behind — at least for a few episodes. Eric Braeden, who has anchored The Young and the Restless as the iron-willed mogul since 1980, is crossing over to CBS’s Beyond the Gates, and he’s opening up about why he said yes and what’s brewing for Victor back home.

The much-anticipated event kicks off June 9, when Victor heads to the gated community of Fairmont Crest at the invitation of an old friend, Vernon Dupree, played by Clifton Davis. The two go way back: Victor has bankrolled Vernon’s political campaigns over the years, while Vernon has pushed legislation that benefits Newman Enterprises. Now Vernon wants Victor to deliver the keynote at a fundraiser for his grandson, congressman Martin Richardson (Brandon Claybon). Braeden won’t be alone, either — Y&R stars Peter Bergman, Susan Walters, Michael Mealor, Bryton James, and Melissa Ordway are all making the trip. And without spoiling much: a tornado reportedly crashes the party.

For Braeden, signing on was a no-brainer. Speaking with TV Insider, he recalled being approached by CBS programming executive Danielle Unger, whom he respects, and agreeing on the spot. He also championed the bigger picture, calling a predominantly Black soap long overdue and saying it was “about time.”

Braeden, who filmed the episodes in Atlanta, said the Beyond the Gates cast made him feel right at home — “warm, wonderful people” — and admitted he had “no nerves at all” stepping onto unfamiliar turf. Ever grounded, he also offered a characteristically blunt take on fame, noting he refuses to let praise go to his head the way he’s watched it change other actors who “believe all the publicity” until “they don’t remain who they are.”

Back in Genoa City, Victor has plenty on his plate. Braeden singled out son Nick Newman’s fentanyl-addiction storyline as some of the show’s most affecting recent work, praising the scene where Nick finally confesses his struggle to his father as “a wonderful scene” rooted in something real. Then there’s the simmering friction with wife Nikki. Braeden boiled that conflict down to one word: jealousy. Victor, he explained, still suspects something happened between Nikki and Jack Abbott in a hotel room and has never been convinced otherwise — so Nikki’s continued closeness with Jack keeps “rubbing salt in the wound.”

The Y&R–Beyond the Gates crossover begins June 9.