Sharon Newman is a fictional character from The Young and the Restless, an American soap opera on the CBS network, currently portrayed by Sharon Case. Created by William J. Bell as a love interest for Nicholas Newman, the character debuted on June 27, 1994. Before Case took over in September 1994, the character was portrayed briefly by Monica Potter and then by Heidi Mark. When first introduced, Sharon was a young girl from the poor side of town; her early storylines included being raped by Matt Clark and the revelation that she had given up a child for adoption. Nick and Sharon married, had a son named Noah, and later won custody of Cassie, the daughter she had as a teenager. Their marriage faced a number of problems, including infidelity on both sides. Following Cassie's death in an automobile accident, Nick cheated on Sharon with Phyllis Summers, resulting in a pregnancy which ended their 11-year marriage.

Matt Clark is a fictional character from the American CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless. The role was originated by Eddie Cibrian in May 1994, who left the show in 1996. After Russell Lawrence briefly playing the character in 2000, Rick Hearst took over the role that year, departing in 2001 after the character was killed off. Hearst returned for several appearances as an apparition. Matt was known as an antagonistic villain who created problems for Nick and Sharon Newman, beginning when they were teens in high school. He raped both Sharon Collins and Amy Wilson, and framed Nicholas Newman for multiple crimes.