GENERAL Hospital has announced a major cast shakeup with the addition of a soap opera legend for the new season.
The long-time series premiered its 63rd season earlier this month.
While devoted watchers weren’t sure what to expect from the ABC drama in upcoming episodes, they’d suspected that iconic soap opera star Erika Slezak might be a part of it.
General Hospital fueled rumors when it hinted that a character with a shocking connection to the Quartermaine family was set to arrive in Port Charles.
Chatter suggested that Erika could portray the late Monica Quartermaine’s sister, played by Leslie Charleson.
Their suspicions about Erika joining the cast were confirmed earlier this week when Soap Opera Digest revealed that the 6-time Emmy Award-winning star will appear in the new season.
They announced that Erika’s character turns up at the Quartermaines’ home and is found by a stunned Tracy, played by Jane Elliot.
General Hospital also shared a teaser for this week’s episodes on its official YouTube channel, offering a glimpse of the shocking moment.
Fans were ecstatic about Erika’s return to daytime TV and expressed their excitement in the comments.
“Bringing Erika Slezak to Port Charles is beyond amazing,” one person wrote.
“OMG!! Erika Slezak is coming as Monica’s long-lost sister on ABC’s General Hospital this week!!” someone else predicted.
“So looking forward to having Erika Slezak join the cast of General Hospital,” added another.
Erika was a staple in the soap-opera circuit, having starred on One Life to Live from 1971 until the show’s finale in 2012.
She reprised her role the following year online for the series’ revival but hasn’t been on daytime television since.
Instead, the actress has been focusing on other TV and film roles, such as a recurring role in Blue Bloods in 2022, a guest appearance in the movie Guest Artist (2019), and a starring role in Next Stop, Christmas (2021).
General Hospital also has several other cast changes for this season, including Finn Carr, played by Rocco Falconeri, who was previously thought to be dead.
