Michael Gross has become a regular on The Young and the Restless. He plays the character of River.

How did the acting veteran come aboard the number-one rated soap opera on TV? He told Soap Opera Weekly about it.

Soap Opera Weekly: How did you end up on The Young and the Restless?
Michael Gross: The show approached me, as they did several other actors, about coming and doing this role. There was frankly nothing on paper. It was an idea. They came to me and said, "Here's this man. We think we know something about him. We'd like to tell you what we think. We'd like to find out from you if you'd be interested in playing him."

There was nothing to read. There was no audition, per se. This is a man and character that's being created even as we speak. We create him as we go along, which is actually quite exciting. It's like building the first automobile. I feel like Henry Ford, saying, "Will this work?" Each episode is another point in the assembly line.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.