General Hospital News: Kelly Monaco’s Mom Explains Her GH Break

The soap world was shocked early this morning when news broke that Kelly Monaco was being temporarily replaced on General Hospital. The actress has been the only one to ever play Sam McCall since 2003, so the news seemed rather alarming.

Why Kelly Monaco Won’t Be Sam Right Away

However, the actress’s mother has taken to Twitter to assure her fans that this is indeed a temporary break and Monaco will be back on the GH set next week. In the meantime, former Passions star Lindsay Hartley will be who we see as Sam when GH returns with new episodes on Monday.

Carmina Monaco responded to concerned fans to reassure them that her daughter is indeed fine, but our pandemic situation made it difficult for Monaco the first day on set.

“Kelly is safe and healthy. First day back she had a hard time with the COVID mask and was given a rather unexpected 14-day quarantine even though she tested negative twice for Covid and a third negative test for COVID antibodies. She is excited to get back on set next week,” Monaco’s mom tweeted.

The actress was included in a promo announcing the soap’s return and we can only assume that was quickly filmed before Monaco began having issues with the mask.

Sam was in the middle of self-reflection when GH last aired new episodes. She was once again separated from Jason (Steve Burton) for her safety and her children’s safety and was quite angry about this. In addition, her sister Kristina (Lexi Ainsworth) had called her out on her addiction to both Jason and danger. However, she kept herself busy by supporting Michael (Chad Duell) and Carly (Laura Wright) as Michael fought for custody for Wiley.

So, it may be a shock for fans when Hartley steps into the role next week and Sam has a new face, but at least we know Monaco is healthy and will be back in her popular role soon. General Hospital (GH) airs weekdays on ABC. Check your local listings for airtimes.