General Hospital
ABC Asks Judge to Throw Out Ingo Rademacher’s Lawsuit Over Firing for Covid-19 Vaccine Refusal
In an update on the lawsuit between former General Hospital star, Ingo Rademacher and ABC, it appears that the network is asking an L.A. judge to toss out the case citing that Rademacher’s beliefs as related to the vaccine were not ‘religious’ in nature and that he was more than likely going to be written off the daytime drams series, anyway.
As soap fans know, Rademacher was fired from GH back in November of 2021 after his failure to comply with the network’s vaccine mandate. Ingo then sued the network in December of 202, with claims that included: religious and disability discrimination, invasion of privacy, political retaliation, to which ABC argues against.
According to a report from The Hollywood Reporter and court documents they procured from a December 28th, 2022 filing, ABC’s lawyer Steven Marenberg says the vaccine policy was the result of “an extensive deliberative process at Disney,” which included a process for evaluating religious and medical exemptions on a case-by-case basis.
Rademacher had addressed his concerns when he submitted for vaccine exception citing his, “deeply and sincerely held moral belief that my body is endowed by my creator with natural processes to protect me and that its natural integrity cannot ethically be violated by the administration of artificially created copies of genetic material, foreign to nature and experimental.”
However, the network cites that Ingo had stonewalled the employee relations department during the review process and refused to give details about his religious views, claiming the questioning was discriminatory and a violation of his civil rights.
In the filing, ABC lawyer Marenberg, added, “Although Rademacher provided little information to ABC in the interactive process, what limited information he did provide, revealed that his opposition to vaccination was rooted in secular, philosophical/moral beliefs … to summarize succinctly, at no point did Rademacher mention that his beliefs are based on, related to, or even loosely connected to any religious text or teaching.” The network argues that this was more about a lifestyle choice for not adhering to the vaccine mandate than a religious one.
ABC also noted that at the time he was terminated, Rademacher was under a three-year contract. Marenberg argues that Ingo was not “assured” of a full three-years, since ABC had the right to cancel the contract in six-month increments as long as it gave the actor six weeks notice. It also required Ingo to comply with ABC’s policies.
he filing also claims that in July 2021, Chris Van Etten, (co-head writer, GH) was preparing to lay out long-term story plans and that he identified Jax, among several characters who would be or might possibly be written off the show. The attorney cites: “At that time, Jax’s role in the ongoing storyline was negligible and Van Etten did not see a role for Jax going forward.”
What do you think of ABC’s argument in the legal case against Rademacher? Do you think the case will be eventually dismissed? Comment below.
I agree
Ingo’s an arrogant ass. He should have been fired for his trans retweet, and then for his asinine and disgusting comments comparing covid vaccine status with what the Jewish people went through during the Holocaust. What he really needs is a brain.
Well put!!! Especially the arrogant ass description!
Thanks. But I think it was an understatement. 😉
As CVE alludes to, there was little need for Jax on the canvas. As Nina was committed to Sonny at that point, there was a chem-test with Britt but that fizzled. There was enough “talk-to” characters on the show that it was necessary to keep Jax on for Joss.
You’re not critical for story when you easily be written out in one-two episodes.
Don’t go away mad – just go away.
the network is overstepping in the decision about what makes a stance religious or not. Religious beliefs don’t need scripture to back them up. This harkens back to the dubious task of making prisoners who desire kosher meals to quote the scriptures that describe it. It makes science of something mystical.
If you cannot name the religion that objects to the vaccine, then it is not a religious objection. It is, however, a personal morality exemption that you are seeking, which was not included in the list of possible exemptions from the vaccine.
Please; Ingo didn’t want to take it and used religion exemption as an excuse like many tried. The vaccines don’t even contain fetal cells. He chose not to take the vaccine which was his right; the company chose to require it which was their right. Done. I’ll tell you what though; any “religious” person who is as bigoted and ignorant as he is, a German comparing the Holocaust victims to having to take a vaccine,and mocking trans people, shouldn’t be suing on religious “discrimination.” He obviously doesn’t even know the meaning of the word.
The character is needed for his daughter. But, the role could be played by another competent actor. I was hoping for the long ago rumor that Trevor St. John was going to take over the part. He would have added an interesting dimension to Jax.
TSJ would’ve been a good Jax. Regardless of who plays Jax – other than a talk to for Joss – what is there for him to do? They’ve got the corporate stuff covered with the Qs and the Cassadines. Romantically, who do you pair him with? Selina would be interesting but Jax has been so anti-mob through the years it wouldn’t work. Sasha would be like robbing the cradle. Jordan would be a good option but the recent chem test with Finn is a clue of where that’s going.
That leaves Carly. The right actor could make that work and would be better than the snooze fest that os Carly and Drew.
OG Steve
I was thinking Carly or Nina, not too many in his age group.
Lew S
I would have liked him better than the conniving jerk he’s playing on Y&R.
I totally agree! It seems like he’s playing Todd/Victor from OLTL.
Yes! Trevor would have been great!
I don’t agree with the decision to mandate vaccines for this virus. Ingo has the right to refuse the vaccine in my opinion. I will not watch General Hospital anymore because of this.
He does have the right to refuse as does Disney/ABC have the right to protect their employees. He chose not to follow their protocol.
It’s taken you 1.25 years to make that decision? This is nothing new. Though I will absolutely agree with you. Ingo does have the right to refuse the vaccine. It’s not even your opinion. It’s a human’s right to have autonomy over one’s own body. But there are consequences. And the consequence was losing his employment. It’s like when people claim “free speech” over something. Free speech prevents the gov’t from acting. It doesn’t prevent the consequences such as being fired from a job.
Thank you!! Finally someone gets it!
Well then whats the reason the fired Steve Burton ( Jason)? He also got fired for not taking the vax.
Steve didn’t burn his bridges behind him though, didn’t sue them, and didn’t make any bigoted insults towards his cast members on the way out. That’s the difference between him and Ingo. And besides that, Jason is far more essential to GH than Jax ever was. You can bet your soul that Jason will be back one day. And it won’t be a recast… because nobody’s going to believe Susan Moore had triplets!!
Steve is about to show up in Salem again, but Days tapes 6 months in advance, so he might already be done over there. Don’t see his character Harris Michaels being long term, but he’s a big part of the storyline that was left in a “cliffhanger” on the second season of “Beyond Salem”.
Wouldn’t it be ironic if Steve ended up being a big part of “February sweeps” on both Days and GH??
At this point, May Sweeps would be the best you can hope for – GH is filming for February this week and is probably written through March or early April (60th anniversary).
Jason will eventually return, but if it happens look for it much later in 2023 or after. Before then, we’re likely to have either a new Lulu or Lucky, a recast Nikolas, a temporary return by Tracy, Lucy being found and maybe perhaps a Luke Spencer alive reveal as well.
Odds are that Lucy, Luke, and Jason are all being held prisoner in the same location. Unless there’s another Cassadine dungeon that’s located somewhere other than their private island off the coast of Greece. They could tie all that in with a Nikolas recast, because the island is where he’s likely to end up if he has to suddenly leave Port Charles in the next couple of weeks, which seems to be the case.
I don’t miss him (Jax or Ingo) at all. GH doesn’t need the character and he did very little while he was there any time he’s been brought back.
He has a right to his beliefs but so does ABC.
I think Jax is right. This is still supposed to be a free country (for now) and he had the right to choose. Doctors and nurses in real life were not fired over the vaccine. The people that are so worried about it should wear the stupid masks. Plus he was under contract. Whether or not he may have been written out is a moot point. I wish Steve Burton had sued too.
Well, it’s Ingo, not Jax. And it is a free country. He had a right to choose and ABC/Disney had a right to choose. It’s a free country for both sides of an issue, not just the side you agree with. He was under contract, but I’m assuming there was a provision in the contract that covers these types of things. As for your “Doctors and nurses in real life were not fired” first, is not accurate and second your usage of “in real life” and the name “Jax” makes me wonder if you are confused… As for Steve Burton suing, why do you wish that? He obviously read his contract and understood the consequences of his actions. Ingo just wanted to be a troublemaker.
Correct, it is a free country and so ABC/Disney is free to set safety measures in its workplace. Steve and Ingo were free to follow those safety measures or choose to look for work elsewhere. And that’s what happened. By declining the vaccine, they made themselves ineligible to keep working on “GH.” That’s how a free society works. There’s no guarantee of a job at any time, and personal decisions have consequences.
Doctors and nurses were fired in real life if they refused. Craziness since the vaccine didn’t stop the spread or keep people from getting the virus.
I’m not getting into his weird personal beliefs about anything other than the covid vaccine. He is absolutely right that his civil rights were violated by trying to force him to do something he did not agree with. I am surprised Steve Burton hasn’t joined him in this lawsuit. Some would call this poetic justice by stating his racist beliefs, but I would actually like to see him win this.
There were absolutely no civil rights violations. First of all, there were no government agencies involved in his firing. This was a Disney corporate policy. You can argue as to whether or not that policy was justified, but you can’t call it a “rights” violation, because there’s no such thing as “Disney civil rights” (or any other corporation).
No. His civil rights were not violated by trying to force him. If they actually forced him, that’s another story. By the way, I’m a lawyer. I’m assuming you’re not. Keep your legal opinions out of your argument unless you are a lawyer. And if you are one, well based on your comment, you’re not a good one.
Except no one forced him to do anything. He was free to sacrifice his employment to follow his conscience, and that’s what he chose to do. That’s how freedom works, and then choices have consequences. His civil rights were completely unaffected. The sad part is burned so many bridges for no reason. As the new information shows (and was obvious from the lack of story line and screen time once Nixon Falls ended), Jax was on the verge of being written out anyway.
Just leave him alone please stop it! He chose to not take the jab ok ! How does that have anything to do with you??? Nothing stop it ! Now think of something else to drive yourselves crazy
I really hope the judge does throw it out.
My body my choice! There are treatments for covid that this company and government refuse to acknowledge. Anybody fired for this over reaching mandate should get their jobs back.
The legality of the vaccination mandate was simple. Covid 19 was a dangerous world pandemic that claimed lives. ABC had a legal requirement to protect everyone connected to the show. Religious objection is a belief that is constitutionally not sound. Ones belief doesn’t protect the liberty of life which was being protected.
Plus his role was questionable and limited to writing a path forward. His charecter wasn’t relevant or needed
Well it’s kind of like abortions doesn’t protect the murdered babies! The babies right to a life doesn’t matter to some people! Which is a sick society we live in!
Good grief Charlie Brown… these are totally different subjects!
I say Go Ingo!! Government and corporate overreach during the plandemic was horrific and tyrannical. No one has ANY right … Legal or ethical … to force medical procedures onto any person! Bodily autonomy is our right, as is our privacy and nondisclosure of medical conditions. At a time when people are screaming “My Body My Choice” when it comes to murdering children in the womb, it is highly hypocritical that the “My Body My Choice” mantra is not adhered to regarding these untested, unproven “vaccines”.
General Hospital
GENERAL HOSPITAL: Sonny Tells Dante, “I Don’t Want a Son Like You,” While Michael Tells Brook Lynn to Bide Her Time Till Chase and Willow Have an Affair
On the Thursday, October 1 episode of General Hospital, both Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) and Michael Corinthos (Rory Gibson) had some things to say and what they had to say didn’t go over well with whom they were talking to!
Sonny had a confrontation with his son, Dante (Dominic Zamprogna), while Michael leveled with Brook Lynn (Amanda Setton) over Chase (Josh Swickard).
GH is setting up a scenario where everyone is going to make it look like Sonny was responsible for having Sidwell (Carlo Rota) beat up in Pentonville; while viewers already know Ava (Maura West) and Drew (Cameron Mathison) were behind it.
Courtesy/ABC
A VISIT WITH DAD
Now, Dante comes to Sonny’s house. He wants to know straight up from his dad if he ordered the attack at Pentonville. Sonny flatly denies any culpability or responsibility, but Dante refuses to believe him.
Dante informs Sonny he has video footage of Sully and Vito at the prison. Sonny explains to Dante he doesn’t know why Sully beat up both Curtis and Dante. Things escalated when Sonny was deeply hurt that Dante refused to believe him. Dante says he was disappointed that his father didn’t respect him enough to be truthful with him!
Sonny asks Dante to consider that he was being set up. He says all he did was to tell Vito to instruct Sully to keep a watchful eye on Sidwell, not to harm him. No matter what Sonny said, Dante continued hammering him with how he knew deep down, even though he said he left the mob, he had to finish off Sidwell for himself.
Next, Sonny explains everything he has ever done was to provide for and to protect his family. Dante fired back that he doesn’t want to deal anymore with Sonny’s half-baked truths. As the two men argue, Gio (Giovanni Mazza) shows up at Sonny’s front door and overhears Sonny losing his temper and shouting at Dante, “Get out of my house! I don’t want a son like you!” The scenes featured an excellent performance by Maurice Benard.
Courtesy/ABC
MICHAEL THE MANIPULATOR
While this is going down, outside the Quartermaine boathouse, Brook Lynn opens up to Michael about living at the Q’s with Chase being there, since he only came back due to legal advice from his lawyer, Monet Mitchell (Blythe Howard).
Brook Lynn questioned whether they should get legally separate. Michael insisted that would be a big mistake. When she asks why, Michael tells Brook Lynn to bide her time until Chase and Willow (Katelyn MacMullen) have an affair; then she’d have full custody of Phoebe.
An angered Brook Lynn pushed Michael into the water and accuses him of moving Willow back into the gatehouse with intent on putting Chase and Willow in closer proximity and sacrificing Brook Lynn’s family in the process. As the two cousins bicker, Chase shows up asking Brook Lynn if she is OK. Michael punctuates their talk with “You know, I’m right.”
CURTIS FIGURES OUT A WAY TO GET OUT OF THE SLAMMER
At GH, Willow visits Curtis (Donnell Turner) in his hospital room. Curtis wants Willow to get him pardoned and keep him out of jail, and in return, he will help her nail Sonny.
Next, Willow tells Dr. Tristan Roberts (Dean Geyer) she wants Curtis held for observation for three more days. He agrees to do so under one condition, that she understands that he may need to call in a favor from a congresswoman.
So, what did you think of how Dante accused his father and refused to believe Sonny’s answers? Is this the end of their father and son relationship for good? Is Michael the most manipulative person of all, except for Willow? Do the two deserve each other? Do you want Chase and Willow to have an affair? And what of Curtis? Does he have many redeeming qualities left? Share your thoughts via the comment section, but first check out the talk Michael had with Brook Lynn.
General Hospital
GH Alum Tajh Bellow and Y&R Alum Loren Lott Star in New Tiktok and Microdrama ‘Love Island’ Spoof
Two soap opera alums very familiar to fans of General Hospital and The Young and the Restless are paired together in a new short-form digital series from none other than Issa Rae’s production entity HOORAE Digital.
Look for Tajh Bellow (ex-TJ Ashford, GH)) and Loren Lott (ex-Ana Hamilton, Y&R) as part of the cast of The Compatibility Experiment, premiering on October 14, 2026, exclusively on TikTok and its companion microdrama platform, PineDrama.
In the video teaser, it appears that Bellow and Lott play a couple, Kelvin and Camila, set in a Love Island reality show-esque environment trying to win the one million dollar cash prize, only what could go wrong?
Photo: HOORAE
The Compatibility Experiment loglines share that it brings a fast-paced, relationship-focused reality check—much like Love Island with a twist. The show takes a participant’s current relationship, introduces them to a potentially more compatible partner, and forces them to navigate the differences with life-changing money on the line.
The new series is part of a groundbreaking content deal between HOORAE Digital and TikTok to develop premium short-form storytelling. The ensemble cast also features; Ayona, Reggie Luck, JaNa Craig, Tosin Morohunfola, Jessica Jacoby, Georgia Warner, and Nick Cassidy.
General Hospital fans know Tajh Bellow for his performances as TJ Ashford, and who earned two Daytime Emmy nominations along the way during his run. Bellow took over the role in 2018 and last appeared on the ABC daytime drama series in December of 2024.
Loren Lott first appeared as Devon’s (Bryton James) sister Ana Hamilton on The Young and the Restless from 2018 to 2019; making a brief return in 2024. She has continued to perform on the stage and screen with recent credits including: Bel-Air, Cherish the Day, and All American: Homecoming.
Check out the trailer for The Compatibility Experiment below and let us know what you think of its concept and if you are glad to see Tajh and Loren again? Hoping they might return to daytime in their GH and Y&R roles at some point in the future? Weigh-in via the comment section.
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General Hospital
GENERAL HOSPITAL: Ava and Drew Revealed to be Behind Framing Sonny for Sidwell’s Prison Beatdown
If you thought that the person responsible for the Pentonville brawl that saw Sidwell (Carlo Rota) and Curtis (Donnell Turner) taken to General Hospital was Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) or even Sidwell himself, you were dead wrong! On the Wednesday, September 30 episode of GH, it turned out that the culprits were actually Ava (Maura West) and Drew (Cameron Mathison).
In story, Drew apparently bankrolled the attack on Sidwell and framing Sonny. He told Ava their planned worked (she came up with it!) but was horrified when Drew informed her that Curtis got caught in the crosshairs. Ava is visibly upset because of her longtime friendship with Curtis’ daughter, Trina Robinson (Tabyana Ali). Drew tried to make Ava see the bright side. Curtis was witness to it and his presence will cast doubt on Sonny’s claims to that he had gotten out of the mob and gone legit.
Later, Vito shows up at Drew’s. They informed him that his guy on the inside of the slammer made a big mistake by hurting their friend and ordered him to leave town.
Courtesy/ABC
BOATHOUSE BRAWL
In other major developments, Danny (Asher Antonyzyn) and Rocco (Finn Carr) have a blow out fight as Danny blames his “brother” for the reason Charlotte was sent off to boarding school.
Rocco told off Danny for Charlotte’s (Bluesy Burke) reckless behavior and he explains he had to protect his sister. He went in on Danny saying that his mother Lulu (Alexa Havins) has been right to send Charlotte to boarding school and far away from Danny.
However, Rocco went a bit too far when he shouted, “And if your mom was alive, she would send you away too!” Next, Danny punched out Rocco, leading to a terrible brawl. An angered Danny yells at Rocco to, “Stay away from me and everyone in my family. And don’t you ever mention my mom again!” Danny storms off.
Courtesy/ABC
Now alone outside the boathouse, Rocco flashes back to his first kiss with Scout (Kayden Brenna Tokarksi), hoping that his fight with Danny will not escalate and ruin their budding romance. Meanwhile, a bloodied-mouth Danny heads over to Sonny’s and Jason (Steve Burton) is there at the same time. He then admits that he has a bad fight with Rocco and they are both beaten up.
WILL SCOUT WISE UP?
At the end of the episode, Scout, who had a fight with Alexis (Nancy Lee Grahn) over Drew, and who keeps telling everyone how good a man her dad truly is, comes upon a suspicious scene.
Scout hides behind the wall outside Drew’s. She sees her dad, Ava and Vito talking. Next, Scout seems to overhear Vito assuring Drew and Ava that their business dealings are done, and he’ll be leaving Port Charles for good.
So, what did you think of the reveal that Ava and Drew were behind framing Sonny for the prison beatdown of Sidwell (and Curtis)? Do you think Danny and Rocco’s relationship can be repaired, or do you think the teenagers will continue to be at each other’s throats? Finally, do you hope Scout gets a clue and stops thinking her dad walks on air? Weigh-in via the comment section, but first check out how Ava and Drew conspired below.
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GENERAL HOSPITAL: Ava and Drew Revealed to be Behind Framing Sonny for Sidwell’s Prison Beatdown
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