Phyllis Summers is a fictional character from The Young and the Restless, an American soap opera on the CBS network. The character was created and introduced by William J. Bell, and debuted in the episode airing on October 18, 1994. Phyllis was originally and most notably portrayed by actress Michelle Stafford, until 1997, when Stafford was replaced by Sandra Nelson. Nelson continued in the role until 1999, when the character left; upon the character returning in 2000, head writer Kay Alden rehired Stafford. Stafford has been praised for her portrayal, for which she has won two Daytime Emmy Awards, but left the series after nearly sixteen years, with the character being written into a coma; Stafford last appeared on August 2, 2013. The role passed to Gina Tognoni, who debuted on August 11, 2014, and continued for nearly five years until she departed in June 2019, when Stafford re-claimed the role. Phyllis was introduced as a groupie of fictional rock singer Danny Romalotti (Michael Damian), and claimed to have given birth to his child, Daniel (Michael Graziadei). Danny married Phyllis out of obligation to his son, sparking a rivalry between Phyllis and Danny's ex-wife, Christine Blair (Lauralee Bell), which is a continuing storyline. The character is known for scheming to get what she wants. Phyllis has also been involved with Jack Abbott (Peter Bergman), Nicholas Newman (Joshua Morrow) and Billy Abbott (Jason Thompson); all three relationships have fan followings.