Tracey Bregman says fans tried to run her off freeway after early Young and the Restless bully plot
Tracey Bregman says her early years playing Lauren Fenmore on The Young and the Restless drew death threats and even a frightening freeway incident, a claim she detailed in a candid conversation on the Soapy podcast.
Hi, I am Zoe Bennett. The facts matter, and the context matters even more. Here is a sharp, sourced breakdown of what Bregman revealed, why it resonates beyond soap culture, and how the industry is still grappling with the line between passionate fandom and unacceptable harassment.
Speaking to fellow daytime veterans Greg Rikaart and Rebecca Budig on Soapy, Bregman explained that the backlash hit hardest when Lauren was written as a teen bully in the early 1980s. The character debuted in 1983 and initially tormented Traci Abbott, played by Beth Maitland. Bregman recalled that viewers hated seeing Traci targeted, which translated into real-world hostility. “It was a double-edged sword playing the mean girl because I would get death threats, and people tried to run me off the freeway,” she said on the podcast. The New York Post summarized the conversation via its entertainment feed, noting Bregman’s emphasis that there were “some bad parts that I never really talked about.”
The intensity of the audience reaction, by Bregman’s account, crossed lines that no performer should have to navigate. She remembers struggling through dialogue that weaponized weight and insecurity, drawn from story beats that emphasized Traci’s vulnerability. “That was very, very difficult because Beth is one of my best friends for 42 years,” Bregman said. She added that delivering those harsh lines often left her in tears, knowing how the words might land personally even in a fictional context. The compassion behind the scenes stands in stark contrast to the on-screen rivalry that, at the time, defined Lauren’s arc.
Four decades later, Lauren Fenmore is a mainstay and a fan favorite. The numbers underscore how deeply Bregman has been woven into daytime TV’s fabric. She has appeared in more than 2,000 episodes across franchises, including 1,847 on The Young and the Restless and 377 on The Bold and the Beautiful, according to the New York Post’s tally. Before Lauren, Bregman already had a daytime track record, portraying Donna Temple Craig in more than 150 episodes of Days of Our Lives from 1978 to 1980.
While Bregman’s story is rooted in the 1980s era of appointment daytime viewing, the theme is current. Negative fan reactions can shadow actors who bring complicated characters to life, even when performers are separate from the roles they play. As a recent example, Eva LaRue told Soap Opera Digest that her brief General Hospital stint proved emotionally challenging because the audience strongly disliked her character. LaRue, adored for years on All My Children, said it was jarring to go from being rooted for to being “literally hated.” Her reflection mirrors Bregman’s insight that audience passion can quickly harden into personal antagonism when fiction is blurred with reality.
There is also a broader workplace safety angle. Bregman’s account of a freeway scare and death threats highlights a persistent risk for public figures who become the face of polarizing storylines. That risk predates social media, yet social platforms have only accelerated the speed and scale of fan feedback. Even in the pre-digital era, soap actors were uniquely exposed because their characters lived in viewers’ homes every weekday, creating an intense, sometimes parasocial connection. The takeaway is not that provocative storytelling should disappear, but that industry norms and fan culture must reinforce a basic boundary. Critique the character, not the person. Celebrate excellent acting, do not punish it.
Bregman’s longevity further reframes the early backlash. Lauren’s evolution from high school tormentor to layered matriarch demonstrates how daytime narratives can rehabilitate and deepen characters over time. It is a testament to writers who pivoted the role and to Bregman’s performance, which invited empathy without erasing early flaws. That arc may be one reason why the same fan base that once recoiled now embraces Lauren as part of the show’s legacy.
As the Soapy conversation made clear, some wounds linger. Bregman did not dwell on the most harrowing details, but her acknowledgment that she had “never really talked about” certain incidents signals how personal and unsettling the experience was. Her remarks, amplified by the New York Post’s coverage and contextualized alongside Eva LaRue’s comments to Soap Opera Digest, function as a reminder: the strongest soap villains are compelling because the actors do their jobs well. The consequence should be accolades and continued story, not threats and fear on the drive home.
For viewers, this is also an invitation to revisit early Lauren-Traci chapters with fresh eyes. Those scenes were part of a larger narrative machine that pushed characters into conflict, then gave them space to grow. That is the rhythm that keeps a daytime institution like The Young and the Restless vital across generations. As for Bregman, the work speaks for itself. Four decades on, she is still here, still working, and still drawing audiences who know the difference between character and actor. At least, most do.
Consider this a teachable moment tucked inside a gripping soap legacy. The storyline made good television. The fallout, as Bregman describes it, should never be part of the job. That wraps up today’s analysis, but keep an eye on the Soapy podcast feed and future cast interviews for more candid history from the people who built daytime’s most enduring worlds.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and New York Post, Soapy podcast, Soap Opera Digest
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