Who plays Traci Abbott on The Young and the Restless? Everything you need to know

The Young and the Restless introduced Traci Abbott in 1982, and the character has made several appearances in The Young and the Restless. Beth Maitland has mostly played the role.

The role of Traci Abbott is one of Maitland's best-known roles. But she has also acted in shows like Criminal Minds and Mr. Holland's Opus and has guest-starred in The Young and the Restless sister soap The Bold and the Beautiful.

Traci has been involved in relationships with Danny Romalotti and Brad Carlton, as well as her rivalry with Lauren Fenmore. For her performance, Beth Maitland received a Daytime Emmy in 1985.

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Beth Maitland played Traci Abbott in The Young and the Restless

Beth Mailand is the actor who has mostly played Traci Abbot on the show, with the exception of 2018, when Valentiny Sky Gordon played a young Traci Abbott.

Beth was born in Rapid City, South Dakota. Her acting career began after her family moved to Scottsdale, Arizona. There, she performed in community theatre productions and studied theatre and music at Arizona State University.

She began her professional career in right earnest after moving to Los Angeles in 1978 and was cast as Traci Abbott in The Young and The Restless four years later, on a three-month contract.

Beth impressed the producers enough for her role to be extended well beyond her initial period, with Traci being a series regular until 1996. She has since continued to appear in a recurring capacity in 1999 and 2001-2002 and multiple appearances from 2006 onwards. She also played Traci in a 2007 guest appearance on The Bold and The Beautiful.

When asked about her continued prominence on the show in an interview with TV Guide, Beth said:

In previous regimes, there was a lot of dismantling done to the Abbotts, especially when they decided to kill off John [the patriarch played by Jerry Douglas]. Traci has kind of moved into his spot to make everyone accountable in the Abbott universe. She's the conscience everyone has to 'fess up to.

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Traci Abbott has become the "rock" of the Abbott family

Traci has had an extended prominence on The Young and the Restless since her debut in 1982. She returned to Genoa City from boarding school, had weight insecurities and felt inferior to her older sister, Ashley Abbot.

She became the president of Danny Romalotti's fan club and moved to Genoa City State University to get nearer to him. Along with Lauren Fenmore, she sang with Danny for his rock band.

Traci's mother would return to Genoa City to visit her, ramping up her insecurities and leaving her open to being manipulated by Lauren. She developed an addiction to diet pills, and her mental state exacerbated after learning that Lauren began an affair with Danny. She got high and crashed her car, sustaining serious heart damage.

Traci would become the center of the Abbott family after John Abbott's death in 2006, stepping in when the family needed a voice of reason to rally around. She demonstrated her leadership abilities when handling her niece, Abby Newman.

Abby's misbehavior began causing a rift in the family, causing Traci to step in and mediate things. Traci would move in with Abby in 2013. As of late, Traci has been appointed the head of the family division of ChanceComm, which was subsequently merged with Newman Media.

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The Young and the Restless airs on CBS.