When Fans Go Too Far: Social Media Soap Bullying Reaches New Heights

Social media sites like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook have given fans unprecedented access to their favorite soap stars… but some have been abusing it and that could ruin things for all involved.

In the last year, more and more actors have been harassed on various social media platforms and it’s forcing them to ask people to please stop the hate and just get along.

There are several reasons for the backlash – some of it is storyline driven, as with the return of General Hospital’s Steve Burton coming between the popular pairing of Kelly Monaco (Sam) and Billy Miller (Drew). One fan even went as far as issuing a death wish for Burton.

GH co-star Kirsten Storms (Maxie) had to address rumors that she was pregnant in real life (she’s not!) because fans were talking about her weight, and these kinds of questions or attacks can be extremely hurtful to the actors. It’s often shocking to see what people ask online that they’d likely never have the guts to say in person.

Last summer, several The Bold and the Beautiful fans were angry at Katie (Heather Tom) and Wyatt’s (Darin Brooks) romance and went as far as to call for the actress to lose her job!

Tom took to Twitter to confront these fans, but why attack an actress for doing her job? She didn’t write the stories!

Unfortunately, the most recent incident has caused Days of Our Lives actor Billy Flynn (Chad) to delete his Twitter account after some fan altercations. This then prompted his co-star Christopher Sean (Paul) to tweet a defense of his friend and set the record straight.

Now Flynn’s fans are upset that he’s no longer tweeting and this could be just the beginning. If more actors continue to be bullied, it’s hard to come up with a reason to stick around and take the abuse. Who could blame them for bailing?

There is a lack of civility that seems to be increasing in soap fandom and while it may have always been there in the past, social media has amplified it to the point that it may cost fans the incredible access to the actors they love most.

Below are some tweets that defend actors from the angry comments popping up on social media in recent days.