General Hospital
Avery Kristen Pohl Makes Her Debut As General Hospital’s Esme Prince
At the end of this week, General Hospital viewers became acquainted with Spencer Cassadine’s (Nicholas Alexander Chavez) accomplice/”girlfriend” when Esme Prince showed up in Port Charles and her introduced herself to the teen scene/Spencer’s friends.
But as fans of the long-running ABC daytime drama have seen, Esme is the one who set fire to Ava’s (Maura West) car in attempt, so she says, to take pressure off of Spencer being Ava’s stalker. Spencer was not too happy with her for that dangerous latest stunt.
Later, Esme meets Trina (Sydney Mikayla), Cameron (William Lipton), and Josslyn (Eden McCoy), and all of them now believe that she is “Spence’s” (as she calls him) girlfriend.
Avery Kristen Pohl is the actress who is taking on the role of Esme and she certainly looks to be a “bad girl” that will cause trouble for Spencer, the Cassadines, and Trina and Josslyn.
On Instagram, Pohl shared: “Look out everyone…Esme Prince has officially made it to Port Charles!! I swear my face is ECSTATIC under my mask. So thrilled to join @generalhospitalabc and work with this AMAZING cast and crew. Special thank you to Frank Valentini, Mark Teschner and all of the producers, writers, and directors. So honored to get to work with such kind and hard working people ❤️❤️❤️”
So, what are your first impressions of Avery in the role of Esme? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.
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Sure sign of a bad soap opera: she just showed up and I’m already sick of her. Not sick of her in the good way, like “Tracy Q. is a nasty person but she’s a riot”. Just plain sick of her. Wake me up when the story is over in 4 years.
This show is just plain written badly. Will we ever see Holly again? Is anyone ever going to find Peter? Does anyone care? Not me.
Very true, whynot. The worst part will be waiting to discover who she’s related to. And is it just me or does the character resemble one of Charles Manson’s acolytes (transplanted 60’s flower child). Either way, I’m bored.
The actress who plays Holly has long haul Covid. Her story is on hold.
Jordan
I need to take a memory pill. Who is Holly?
Holly Sutton Scorpio. Robert’s second wife. She was also briefly involved with Luke in the early 80s when he thought Laura was dead.
Holly was presumed dead in a plane crash in the late 80s, but like everybody else in Port Charles, eventually returned from the dead. She’s come & gone a few times since then, but her last real appearance was during Luke’s exit story.
Last year she supposedly died again, but nobody really believes she’s dead. Robert & Ethan (Holly’s son with Luke – don’t ask how that happened) searched around for her for a while but didn’t find her. We saw about 2 seconds of a cell phone video showing Holly being held prisoner in some basement, Hell only knows where.
The storyline never picked up from there because Emma Samms had what’s called “long COVID” where she was still dealing with the virus several months later. I haven’t heard any recent updates on her health, but hopefully she’s improved by now, as this has been well over a year ago that this all happened.
There is no such thing as long covid. You of all people should know that!
I’m a Devil, not a doctor. So I don’t presume to diagnose patients online. What are your medical credentials??
To JJ-There is most definitely a medical condition called long Covid. The Center for Disease Control aka CDC clearly states that post-Covid conditions, long Covid, are a wide range of new, returning, or ongoing health problems people can experience four or more weeks after being infected with Covid. I suggest you read up on it.
In Satan’s defense, I believe he meant a long bout with Covid. Believe me, there is such a thing as an extended affliction with Ciovid. Recovery period depends on one’s age, weight, general well-being etc.
Satan,
Thanks, I do remember now. I wonder if she might be the woman we heard screaming in the prison where Drew is being held. I think you may be on to something mentioning Jerry Jax. I can’t believe that Peter has so many irons in the fire, especially when he’s so fixated on Maxi.
Well, when I was guessing Jerry’s involvement, I wasn’t yet aware that Whiny Heiny had somehow escaped from Hell. Since the real Nurse Chloe is also being held prisoner in the same facility, it has to be Heiny, since there’s no other person who would kidnap this poor nurse.
The screaming woman is either Holly or Hayden. Holly would be my preference out of the two, but since Frank Valentini wants to prop his NuDrew AMC pet, odds are that he would bring back the other AMC pet and have them break out of Heiny’s prison together.
Holly Sutton, Ethan is her son with Luke.
Jordan-who is Ethan?
Holly’s son with Luke… He was on last September when Robert and Olivia went to Holly’s memorial.
And on a related note, where the hell is Robert? He’s yet to make his way back from Ireland, I suppose?
Tristan Rogers was apparently put in a “time out” by Frank after making accurate comments about the character of Peter August and whether the actor who portrays Peter was right for the role.
Rogers recently indicated that he’s likely headed back to the show, so hopefully Robert reappears in September.
Just read that too. Frank needs to grow a pair. TR has always been very outspoken (and accurate) about the shortcomings of GH, and if you drop a piranha into a swimming pool, don’t get ticked off when it bites!
Tristan Rogers is a GH legend. Whiny Heiny is a fucking embarrassment.
Choose wisely, Frank. Your old pal ReRon didn’t. That’s why he’s not there anymore.
Totally agree with you, Satan! And bonus points for dropping the “F” bomb to make your point! Yet GH producers have a long history of NOT “choosing wisely.”
Oh jamesj75, WWHHHYYYYYY is Peter Puke back to torment us? Haven’t we suffered enough? Now this extended mob EPIC that’s brewing– dragging in Liesl, Scott, CLUELESS Gladys, Joss, Cyrus, the Novak clan….Oh where will it end? I’m FFing 2-thirds lately, only stopping for gorgeous Chase, Liesl, Britt, and Ava/Nikolas. The Corinthos story is like COVID… it’s everywhere and just won’t go away!!
You said it, Soaphound! I like your choices for the one-third of the show you’re not FFing. Speaking of which, this show is FFing pathetic…
Soap hound…I agree about all of the mob stuff. Boring. But I really like Liesl with Scott. Love the levity and affection in how they talk to each other. Then after watching Charles Shaughnessy appear today I was waiting for Fran (Nanny) to bring dinner to her.
Oh, Satan—my virgin ears—-
She looks like she could be a half sister of Ja”NELLE”
I thought the same thing!
Egad – that would either mean Nina had two children we never knew about or Silas spawned 3.
Wonder who would outdo the other…Nelle or Esme?
I’m beginning to wonder if the writing team has had turnover this year. They were on a roll with the Cyrus story and with the Jason/Britt story. I’m not feeling some of these new storylines.
I agree, Carrie. Why did they have to go and kill the blooming attraction between Jason and Britt!? They were perfect together.
I was finally into a Jason-romance—Stone-Cold melted somewhat—I felt it–which I had never experienced before—not as much as a shiver when he was with Sam. She is completely sparkless—nothing! Same with Dante–
Now, we have to deal with Peter again—I would recognize those skinny, Olive Oyl ankles anywhere.
LOL Celia on the Olive Oyl ankles. The voice is similar, too.
HaHa—and, he’s so intimidating, too, Soaphound. I was scared out of my wits, today, when he slammed the chair down, ordering Nina to sit!! WOW!! What an impressive presence–NOT!!
You surely have seen enough soaps to know that when a character is presumed dead, s/he doesn’t show up again until their spouse is about to or just tied the knot with someone new. So much drama that way! So Sonny won’t regain his memory until Carly weds Jason, or the night after Carly weds Jason. And you are right about Jason & Brett, it was interesting to see these two very different people drift towards each other. I cringe whenever I think of C&J kissing. It’s almost incestuous. You can bet the writers will get there.
Eewwww, Pamela. LOL– Jason and Carly kissing? Upchuck However, I still have hope for Britt and Jason—unless Jax cuts in.
Carly’s and Jason’s marriage is one of convenience, for lack of a better word. So, unless they are both desperate for THAT which neither has had in a while, they may not indulge in a night of yucky passion.
.
That was a intriguing surprise; it’s part of what makes GH so good right now, the powers to be keep their spoilers close to the vest. It also adds another layer to the Ava stalking story while giving Trina and Spencer’s burgeoning romance a hiccup. It’s nice to see a sketchy interloper into the younger foursome.
I’ve actually been really enjoying GH lately and tthink the writing has been solid. And of course the acting is always top notch. Overall, I’m looking forward to watching the storylines unfold in the coming weeks.
I want no part of snarky Esme or the new smarmy Spencer. Esme already has shades of a Helena Cassidine. That’s so already done to death. The new Spencer actor acts a little too old for playing Spencer and has none of the charm of the previous actor.
Just another entitled rich girl was my first impression and setting anyone’s car on fire, is much more than a prank, it’s malicious and unlawful. Even nuSpencer had the grace to be appalled.
Soaphound is also right about this girl resembling Chas.Manson’s flower child and I can also see Margherita’s seeing some likess to Nell.
Bad,bad girl. But, oh so pretty!!
The girl definitely has screen presence. Yet another new contract performer – one that nobody saw coming.
So, she probably needs to be connected to another character somehow to justify the Ava hatred.
Ryan’s daughter?
Another forgotten child of Connie’s?
Steve,
I think you’ve nailed it. Did you see Fri.show? Our little demon spawn is most definitely connected to Ryan or why would she show such blatant interest of which Harmony took note of and warned Alex as to her character. If they aren’t related, it must be just evil recognizing evil, really spooky.
Steve and Violet…Oh I agree either related someway or just evil recognizing evil. She’s a very good actress because she spooked me her first day. And it looks like even Ryan is spooked by her…go, go, go.
I love her! She is pretty and she is a good actress. She is thrown right in the middle of a big story. I think somehow she could be Willow’s younger sister?
Hey, Timmmy—right!! Esme could, actually, be anyone’s sister, at this point. That’s the way the ball bounces on soaps.
I know she’s a criminal. But, I like her acting “endowments”— her eyes speak a thousand words. Very expressive. And, her in-your-face attitude is captivating. Go figure—I usually root-root for the good guy.
If she’s to remain, I wonder how her character would be steered down the path of righteous enlightenment.LOL.
Nonetheless, I can’t take any more chaos—it’s in every corner. A little balanced, cognitive handle on things goes a long way.
Timmm,
Hopefully not. I would think that Harmony would know she’d had another child.
Harmony’s definitely not her mother… at least not that she knows of. Given her weirdo cult past, it’s always possible that she gave a baby up for adoption. Though if that’s the case, Willow never mentioned it.
Both Harmony & Ryan seem to think there’s something REALLY wrong with Esme. And if you’re too crazy for those two, well that’s a whole new level of crazy!
I’m sure there are many layers to peel back, but I’m hoping we won’t have to suffer through this stalker storyline much longer. I’m hoping Ms. Prince will be Spencer’s scapegoat and that he’ll learn his lesson ~ him and his father ~ and get it together.
Even Ryan thinks this chick is psycho. Harmony too. Now those are some expert opinions on insanity.
Hi Satan 🙂
Avery Kristen Pohl /Esme Prince-
She is more than good!
She is bringing it home!
She’s acting exactly as the smart-arsh devious bitch
she is written to be.
I like her for bringing a new fire to the screen!
Characters like her give a soap the oomph it needs.
The latest ratings are out for the week of October 26-30, 2026 and the big takeaways include: that CBS daytime’s Beyond the Gates was separated by only 23,000 viewers behind third place (of the soaps) General Hospital! For the last several weeks, Beyond the Gates has been closing the gap on this year’s winner for Outstanding Daytime Drama Series, and continuing to best GH in the key demos.
According to the latest Nielsen ratings breakdown from Soap Opera Network, the final week of October brought Beyond the Gates 1.790 million on average tuning-in and the show set a season high in total viewers. Meanwhile, General Hospital hit a new season low! The long-running ABC soap had 1.813 million for the week, and once again the series did not go over the 2 million mark.
Meanwhile, in the key Women 18-49 demo, Beyond the Gates was firmly ahead of GH with a rating share of 0.21, while General Hospital had 0.17 rating share.Then, in the key Women 25-54 demo, Beyond the Gates was once again ahead of the ABC soap with a ratings share for that demo at 0.30 while GH came in with 0.26.
Photo: CBS
MORE BY THE NUMBERS
In addition and comparatively, Beyond the Gates +22,000 viewers week-to-week, and had the largest gains in viewership year-to-year in daytime TV with +267,000 from this in 2025.. However, General Hospital seems to be going in reverse. The show was down -56,000 viewers week-over-week and down -22,000 year-over-year .
BEYOND THE GATES
Let’s take a look at some of the storylines that had people tuning-in to Beyond the Gates during the ratings week:
Hayley (Marquita Goings) attempted a massive shocker regarding her pregnancy and tried to use it to extract money from Bill Hamilton (Timon Kyle Durrett). Although, Bill saw right through her game, he demanded a paternity test, and made it clear he has no intention of raising the child—planning instead to pay her off to take the baby and leave. Meanwhile, Hayley confided her plan to her cousin Randy (Maurice P. Kerry).
Jacob Hawthorne (Jibre Hordges) and Naomi Hamilton (Arielle Prepetit) clashed over Jacob’s ongoing investigation into The Impaler, causing significant strain in their marriage. At the same time, Smitty (Mike Manning) considered taking matters into his own hands—including potentially heading to Mexico for evidence—while Martin Richardson (Brandon Claybon) worried about what comes next.
Photo: ABC
GENERAL HOSPITAL
Over at General Hospital for the ratings period, the story served up included:
Carly (Laura Wright) and Valentin (James Patrick Stuart) teamed up to investigate what really happened to Jack Brennan (Chris McKenna). Later, Danny (Asher Antonyzyn) leads them to Jack’s dead body.
Jude (Wil Traval) dropped a bombshell claim to Alexis (Nancy Lee Grahn); that he is Phoebe’s father, while Brook Lynn (Amanda Setton) and Chase (Josh Swickard) signed their divorce papers.
Then, Danny caught Rocco (Finn Carr) and Scout (Kayden Brenna Tokarski) sharing a kiss, plus the shocking return of Heather Webber (Alley Mills) capped the week.
Now the questions become; without having much promotional synergy in the ABC day-part to draw more eyeballs it is not helping but hurting General Hospital. It seems Beyond the Gates is also a benefactor of a one-two-three punch of CBS soaps (Y&R, B&B and BTG) and promotion.
However, that still doesn’t take away the fact that Beyond the Gates is close to besting GH in all ratings category as they go head-to-head in some markets across the country.
So, are you excited to see Beyond the Gates climb in the ratings? Are you concerned for General Hospital? Do you think they can stave off Beyond the Gates in total viewers or will the upstart soap overtake them in the next ratings report? Share your thoughts in the comment section.
Antonio Sabáto Jr., the former Jagger Cates of General Hospital and GH: Night Shift, and the former Dante Damiano of The Bold and the Beautiful has issued his first public statement since the incident involving his son, Jack’s arrest in Alaska for a fatal hit-and-run.
Jack is the son of Sabáto Jr. and Oscar-nominated actress Virginia Madsen, and according to court documents obtained by KTUU Jack, was allegedly driving a white Chevy Tahoe when he hit and killed Carl Simmonds, 42, near an intersection in Anchorage around 5:35 a.m. on Monday, November 9.
The reports indicated that Jack fled the scene — but later decided to called the cops to say he hit “something” that “suddenly appeared in the road” while he was “doing late-night DoorDashing.”
Photo: NBC
Now, Antonio has taken to his Instagram breaking his silence on the situation, sharing, “At this time, my family and I are navigating an extremely sensitive and deeply personal matter.”
He added, “As a father, my love for my children remains unconditional, and my priority is the well-being of my family. We ask that the public and members of the media honor our privacy during this difficult time and keep us all in your thoughts and prayers.”
The soap alum concluded, “I also wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of the gentleman who tragically lost his life. My thoughts and prayers are with them as well. We sincerely appreciate your compassion, understanding, and respect for the privacy of everyone affected.”
Jack Sabáto was arraigned in court on Tuesday, November 10 with bail set at $5,000, and a no-driving order and the potential of $5,000 penalty fees if he fails to attend future court appearances.
Antonio is the father to Jack, 34, daughter, Mina Sabato, 24 and son, Antonio Sabáto III, 15.
This is a developing story. You can check out Antonio’s official statement below.
So, let us know your thoughts on this tragic hit-and-run, which claimed the life of another man, and Antonio’s statement, via the comment section below.
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Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Ava’s (Maura West) daughter Avery looks quite different, starting on today’s November 9 episode of General Hospital. That’s because GH has made Avery into a full-blown teenager and the role is now being played by actress Alya Bullington.
In her debut, the Tennessee native was thrown into the deep soap waters with Daytime Emmy winners, Maurice Benard and Eden McCoy (Josslyn). Bullington weighed-in to TV Insider about her first scene which featured Avery overhearing a fight between Sonny and Josslyn.
She explained “It was something I have never done before, I did not have a lot of experience with the screaming and the crying stuff, but I got my first script, and I was like, ‘OK, this is a huge opportunity to learn so much about how that stuff works and to become this character that I have never even tried playing before.’”
Photo: ABC
THE TEENAGED VERSION OF AVERY WILL HAVE A LOT TO CONTEND WITH
Speaking of working with McCoy, Bullington shared, “She’s incredible. I remember her just laughing and making jokes on set, and then the minute that they started taping, she just locked in and she cried immediately, and my first thought was, ‘I want to be able to do that.’
The soap opera newcomer added, “I think she just inspired me so much because she is so great and she can just lock into whatever character she wants to in the moment.”
The character of Avery was born back in 2014, but as recently as the October 8 episode of General Hospital, the character was suddenly referred to as a teenager. This is the second young female character in recent months to be aged up following the casting of Kayden Brenna Tokarski as Scout Cain.
As for her take on Avery and what’s ahead, Alya said,“She’s emotional, and she’s curious, and she’s a really fun person to play because so much stuff is happening in her life. I think she’s kind of confused about what’s happening and what to believe.”
So, what do you think about General Hospital making Avery a teenager? Are you excited to see the conflict between Sonny, Ava and Avery now that they have aged up the character? Share your thoughts and welcome Alya to GH via the comment section below.
THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: Katie Kicks Bill to the Curb … for Now
RATINGS: ‘Beyond the Gates’ Inches Closer to ‘General Hospital’ in Total Viewers
B&B’s Sydney Bullock Weighs In on Future of Dylan and Will: ‘I Think She Can Hold on to Him for Awhile’ (Exclusive)
Antonio Sabáto Jr. Breaks Silence on His Son’s Arrest for Fatal Hit-and-Run
DANCING WITH THE STARS: A Shocking Elimination on Grammy Night Leaves Ballroom Silenced
Y&R’s New Head Writers Share Vision for Genoa City: Contemporary Homage to Bill Bell, Mixing Heightened Escapism and Grounded Reality
THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS Preview: Episodes From New Co-Head Writers, Jamey Giddens and Dan O’Connor, Begin to Air
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