‘The Young and the Restless’ Developing Storyline to Honor Kristoff St. John and Character Neil Winters

The Young and the Restless is developing a storyline to honor Kristoff St. John and his character, Neil Winters.

CBS announced Thursday, just days after St. John was found unresponsive in his San Fernando Valley home, that the long-running soap opera will pay tribute to the late actor with a special storyline currently in development that will air in April.

“The Young and the Restless will forever value the legacy of Kristoff St. John in his portrayal of Neil Winters,” the network said in a statement to PEOPLE. “Beginning in late April, Y&R will feature a storyline that pays tribute to both Kristoff and his character.”

St. John had portrayed the struggling alcoholic and ladies man Neil Winters for 27 years, first taking on the role in 1991. The role earned him 10 NAACP Image Awards, nine daytime Emmy nominations, and in 1992, he won a Daytime Emmy for outstanding younger actor in a drama series for his portrayal of Neil Winters.

The popular daytime series, which aired St. John’s final episode on Wednesday, will also remember the late actor on Friday with a special tribute to air during the episode.

“To honor Kristoff St. John, #YR will air a special tribute to him during the show on Friday, Feb. 8,” The Young and the Restless official Twitter account announced Tuesday. “His final episode of The Young and the Restless will air tomorrow. Please join us in saying goodbye to a beloved member of the Y&R and [CBS Daytime] family.”

The late actor had been found by a friend unconscious and unresponsive Sunday, and paramedics who responded to the scene pronounced him dead upon their arrival. His death came just five years after his son Julian died by suicide.

In the wake of his death, St. John’s The Young and the Restless co-stars have flocked to social media to pay tribute to the late actor.

“I lost my brother yesterday,” S.W.A.T. star and Young and the Restless alum Shemar Moore wrote. “I’ve never had a brother, but you were my brother. You showed me the way. You were my mentor, my inspiration. You showed me what true talent was. You showed me what humility was. I love you. I hate this. I love you, but I’m going to celebrate all your good.”

“He deserves as loving a tribute as my early morning sadness can muster,” Yvette Nicole Brown wrote in her own post, remembering St. John as “the kind of person you meet who you feel like you’ve known your entire life.”

A cause of death has not yet been determined, the Los Angeles County Coroner deferring a manner of death pending the completion of an “additional investigation.”