This ‘Daytime Emmy Winner’ Reveals Why He’s Not Looking Back While Taking Over an Iconic Daytime Villain Role

The Young and the Restless newcomer and Daytime Emmy winner Roger Howarth is opening up about how he approached taking over the role of the villainous role of Matt Clark.

Howarth is the fourth actor to play Matt Clark. Eddie Cibrian originated the role in 1994. The character was later recast in 2000 with Russell Lawrence, before Rick Hearst took over until Matt was written out in November 2001.

Howarth discussed the role in an interview with TV Insider’s Stephanie Sloane, where he reflected on joining the top-rated soap and teased what viewers can expect.

Asked about his approach, Howarth said, “I trust the writing and I think that the writers have a clear vision of who this guy is.”

Executive producer and head writer Josh Griffith has led the soap since 2019. He previously worked with Howarth on One Life to Live, where Howarth rose to fame as Todd Manning.

Howarth said he hasn’t focused on revisiting the character’s past scenes, choosing instead to focus on the current scripts. “I really just try to stick to what I could figure out from what they were writing rather than try to do what the other two actors who’ve played the part did.”

That does not mean he lacks appreciation for his predecessors. “I’m a fan of both of them. I have a huge respect for them. I know Rick a little bit and he’s a lovely guy,” he said.

Howarth added that the key is moving the character forward rather than recreating the past. “On some level, you have to just do your thing with what the writers give you,” he added. “That’s probably the best way to go about it.”

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Howarth has enjoyed a successful daytime career since debuting on Loving in 1992 as Kent Winslow and later appearing on Guiding Light as Jory. He later became a soap icon on One Life to Live as Todd Manning, followed by an eight-year run on As The World Turns as Paul Ryan, before joining General Hospital, where he played three different roles over 11 years.

Howarth stepped away from General Hospital and daytime television in 2023 before returning as Matt Clark on The Young and the Restless in 2025.

The Young and the Restless airs weekdays on CBS with episodes streaming weeknights on Paramount Plus.