Present in the cast of the soap “The Young and the Restless” for a year, Richard Burgi, well known to fans of “The Sentinel” and “Desperate Housewives”, revealed to have been fired a few days ago due to a violation of the series’ anti-Covid rules.
Like other series before it, The Young and the Restless has just suffered from the Covid-19 epidemic which has been raging for two years now.
Earlier this week, comedian Richard Burgi (Desperate Housewives, The Sentinel) announced in a message posted on social networks his departure from The Young and the Restless, less than a year after joining the cast of the successful soap in the role of Ashland Locke.
“I want to thank you, all of you who have been so kind, generous, and supported me”, declared Richard Burgi in a post intended for the public. “This year within the Young and the Restless has been superb, surrounded by actors and a brilliant team”.
At the same time, the Soap Opera Digest site revealed that Burgi would be replaced by comedian Robert Newman (Guiding Light), who would make his first screen appearance as Ashland Locke in February in the United States on CBS.
And while the reasons for the departure of his predecessor remained unknown, Richard Burgi ended up explaining himself on Instagram, in a message relayed by TVLine. And it is a mistake on his part, linked to the measures put in place by the production to fight against the Covid, which led to his dismissal from the series.
Screenshot / CBS
“I want to clear it up. My wife explained that it was the production’s choice, which is true. But the truth is, I naively and inadvertently violated the show’s anti-Covid protocol.”.
Richard Burgi goes on to reveal that he tested positive for Covid-19 during the Christmas holidays and confined himself for five days, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before returning to the studio and getting test negative twice in order to resume work. Unfortunately for him, the production of The Young and the Restless imposes a longer period of isolation.
“The protocol I adopted did not follow the rules of production, which required confinement for 10 days before resuming filming”, continues the actor. “I unwittingly violated the series’ anti-Covid rules”.
“I felt terrible, and still do today. It really bothers me, but it’s like that. I respect the production’s decision. They are doing their best, like all of us. I wish the comedian who is going to play Ashland the best. He will be touring with a great actress and a wonderful set of actors. It’s a great series, I only have very fond memories of this adventure. “.
In France, the episodes of The Fires of Love with Richard Burgi will not be broadcast before 2023 on TF1.
