Night Shift Reborn? Tristan Rogers Gives His Pick For a New GH Writer

General Hospital (GH) has a quandary.

Now that head writer Jean Passanate has announced her exit from the soap, fans are wondering who — if anyone — the show will hire as her replacement to work alongside GH head writer Shelly Altman.

Tristan Rogers, who has portrayed leading man Robert Scorpio on and off since 1980, has a great idea on who could help fill the scribe’s void.

“Well, you know who should the be the (new co) head writer, don’t you?” Rogers recently rhetorically asked Soap Hub. “Sri Rao!”

Another Life
Rao is familiar to fans of the GH companion series Night Shift that ran on SOAPnet in 2008. In season two of Night Shift, Rao crafted a compelling story in which Robert successfully battled cancer, but it was a tough fight.

Still, it was especially touching to watch Robert’s journey because it was clear that Rao has a deep understanding of Scorpio and the dynamics he shares with his family and friends.

Home Again
Per Sri’s storyline, Night Shift recreated the Scorpio house from the 80s that Robert lived in when he was married to Holly, and where he first met Robin, not knowing she was his daughter.

As Robert hovered between life and death on Night Shift, he imagined himself back in the house with the bannister-free staircase where he interacted with Robin, Anna, Luke, Mac, Tiffany, and Sean. The past was present, and the story was met with critical praise.

All that was missing was Holly (Emma Samms) — and Rao explained her absence by having Anna (Finola Hughes) joke that Holly’s invitation to join Robert’s loved ones at a gathering must have gotten lost. (Anna was in charge of making sure everyone knew about it!)

The Write Stuff
“Sri has a knowledge of GH that goes way beyond [what] currently anyone on the show [has] — me included,” quipped Rogers, hastening to add on a more serious tone, “I don’t know of anybody who can fill that [head writer] role properly.”

The actor theorizes that Rao would use his detailed knowledge of Port Charles to “rebuild the history of the show” and focus on core families and veterans “not this tidal wave of new kids that have no franchise with the public.”

Rogers popped up on GH last summer, but he’s been keeping a low profile since then. Still, the fan favorite, who has come and gone from the show over the years, is always open to reprising the Aussie hunk.

“Never say never,” Rogers said with a smile.

While Rao has never headwritten a daytime soap, the good news is he is still writing. His IMDB.com page lists him as being responsible for “screenplay/story” for the 2016 film Look Again and Again. Maybe GH should give Rao a “look”?

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