Fans of daytime drama will still find The Young and the Restless (Y&R) and The Bold and the Beautiful (B&B) on their screens on New Year’s Day 2026, but with a small catch. Instead of brand-new episodes, CBS will air special reruns, giving viewers a chance to revisit some recent, story-shaping moments from both soaps.
This scheduling choice follows a long-standing holiday tradition. New Year’s Day typically brings preemptions or encore presentations across daytime television, allowing cast and crews a brief break while networks maintain consistent programming. For soap fans, it’s less about missing an episode and more about reliving key drama.
For The Young and the Restless, the rerun selected focuses on a pivotal episode from late 2025—one that pushed major character arcs forward and set the tone for storylines heading into the new year. These types of episodes are often chosen strategically, reminding viewers where emotional threads were left before fresh episodes resume.
Meanwhile, The Bold and the Beautiful will also air a repeat that highlights significant relationship and family dynamics. The episode revisits moments that sparked ongoing conflict and emotional fallout, making it a smart refresher for longtime viewers and a helpful catch-up point for anyone who may have missed it the first time around.
While some fans may initially be disappointed by the lack of new content, reruns on holidays often perform surprisingly well. Viewers tend to tune in while relaxing at home, and revisiting high-impact episodes can renew excitement for what’s coming next.
New episodes of both Y&R and B&B are expected to resume immediately following the New Year’s Day break, picking up momentum as 2026 officially gets underway. Storylines paused for the holiday are set to move forward quickly, with consequences from late-2025 drama carrying straight into the new year.
So if you tune in on January 1, don’t be surprised to see familiar scenes instead of fresh twists. Think of it as a recap with purpose—a brief pause before the soaps dive headfirst into their next wave of emotional chaos.
For devoted fans, it’s still a perfect way to ring in 2026: coffee in hand, drama on screen, and plenty more still to come.
