Kelly Monaco is set to leave “General Hospital” after over 21 years on the ABC soap opera, Variety has confirmed. Monaco, who has portrayed Sam McCall since 2003, will make her final appearance this fall due to storyline developments.
Monaco joined “General Hospital” following her role as Livvie Locke on the spinoff series “Port Charles,” where she worked from 2000 to 2003. Her character Sam initially appeared as a con artist seeking to change her family’s fortunes. Sam is the biological daughter of mob boss Julian Jerome (William deVry) and attorney Alexis Davis (Nancy Lee Grahn), and was also adopted by Cody McCall (Stanley Kamel) and Evelyn Bass.
Throughout her tenure, Monaco has filmed over 2,200 episodes and earned a Daytime Emmy nomination in 2006. Notably, in August 2020, Lindsay Hartley briefly took over the role, with Monaco returning later that year.
Monaco’s departure comes amidst a wave of returning “General Hospital” veterans, including Jonathan Jackson as Lucky Spencer and Rick Hearst as Ric Lansing. Emma Samms is also set to reprise her role as Holly Sutton in early September, coinciding with Jackson’s return.
Soap Opera Network was first to report Monaco’s exit.
