General Hospital
GH’s Maurice Benard and Chris McKenna Talk Charles Mesure’s Exit and the Recasting of Jack Brennan
Chris McKenna (Jack Brennan) revealed for the first time publicly that he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder on a memorable episode of his castmate, Maurice Benard’s (Sonny Corinthos) mental health You Tube series, State of Mind that dropped on Sunday, December 21st.
During their sit-down conversation and as previously reported, McKenna shared that he had his first major depression as a teenager. However, when COVID hit, he had a major psychotic episode which required hospitalization, and that’s when Chris explained he was properly diagnosed, which in turn got him on the medication lithium, where he added, “That’s where I am today.”
In addition, Maurice discussed with Chris the behind the scenes story of how McKenna landed the role of Jack Brennan, after the first Brennan, Charles Mesure, made the decision to exit the series. Mesure’s last airdate as Brennan was on January 30 of this year. McKenna stepped in beginning on the February 4 episode of the ABC daytime drama series.

Photo: ABC
Previously, a GH rep told Soap Opera Digest, on the casting switch: “Charles Mesure opted to exit the role of Brennan. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors. General Hospital looks forward to continuing Brennan’s exciting storyline with Chris McKenna in the role.” Daytime fans knew of McKenna’s work best from his roles as a teenaged Joey Buchanan on One Life to Live (1990-1993) and later as Mark Harding on The Young and the Restless (2014-2015).
HOW CHRIS BECAME JACK BRENNAN
Now, Maurice shared his vantage point on what went down: “Let me first say, there was another actor in the role (referring to Mesure) that Chris came in for, and I’ll just say this, he was good, but if you don’t want to be there, get out, and that’s kind of the whole situation. He got out, and I am not saying this is with him, but sometimes when you get out, somebody comes in and the audience loves them and then you’re really in trouble, because a lot of times, the audience hates the next person.” Chris added, “Especially the way I came in which was just after the first kiss (between Carly and Brennan).” Benard explained, “And he was liked, but you came in and now they automatically love you.” Next, Benard asked McKenna, how he landed the part of Brennan.
“I did Y&R 10 years ago. I was on there for a year and a half recurring. So, that was the other time I had been on daytime. It was One Life to Live and then The Young and the Restless And now, 10 years later, this came along,” recounts McKenna. “I had told this story once before, but I had gotten calls from GH over the years, over the past decade, each time asking me, ‘Would you be interested in returning to daytime? And if so, would you like to read with Laura Wright?’ Each time I said, ‘I’d love to, and I’d love to read with Laura Wright.’ They said, ‘OK. Hold on. Hang tight, we’ll call you back.’ No call. Okay, fine. Couple years go by it’s, ‘Hey, GH just called. They want to know would you be interested in returning to daytime, and would you want to read with Laura Wright?’ I said, ‘Yes, sure.’ Then, that doesn’t happen.
So, I thought Frank Valentini (executive producer, GH) who I knew from One Life to Live back in the day just doesn’t want to see me. I’m thinking, ‘He probably thinks I’m still 14 and can’t picture it.’ Then, they called me again. This is just a year ago, and said, ‘Would you like to come back to daytime and read with Laura Wright?’ So, I said, ‘Yes, I would,’ but I said, ‘this isn’t going to happen’ to my manager. I said, ‘Why do they keep calling me? They’re not going to do it or they would have already.’
FINALLY AUDITIONING WITH LAURA WRIGHT
“Now, it’s January of this year, and me and wife just had a baby (their son, Spencer), and I’m nesting, I’ve gained weight. I’m not ready to go because I’m in baby-mode. I get a call and the city isn’t opened up yet after New Year’s. And they go, ‘Do you want to come in to GH and read with Laura Wright?’ I tell my manager, ‘Why do they bother me? They’re not going let me come read.’ He’s like, ‘I know you’re right. I won’t even bother you with it.’ The next time they call, he calls me back like two hours later and goes, “Something must have happened. They really want you there on Tuesday to read with Laura Wright in front of Frank and a bunch of people!”
Chris continues, “So after doubting it would happen, they really send me a script and I thought, ‘Well I know what to do with this.’ Then, when it was time for the audition there was a room full of guys who look like me, middle-aged and some good actors. Laura was at the end of the hallway, She saw me and gave me a hug in front of everyone one else which I am sure did not sit well with them, But I knew Laura from when she was on Loving. I hadn’t seen her in 32 years. We used to play in the same Make-A-Wish softball game where she was the pitcher and I was the catcher. She made me so nervous back then.”

Photo: ABC
“If you had told me when I was 14, that later in my life I would be doing love scenes with Laura Wright, I would’ve been like that’s all I have to do in life, “expressed McKenna. “Then, I went in to read and some of the writers knew me from One Life to Live, which I didn’t know were going to be there. I said, ‘Don’t think of me as this gangly 14-year-old kid now.”‘ I did the scene and it went very well. Laura turned to MK Weir (producer, GH) and Frank, and by the time I got home, there was talk about whether or not I was going do an accent or not, but they decided just, ‘you be you.'”
Being cast as WSB Port Charles bureau chief, Jack Brennan has meant the world to Chris. “I’m so happy on this set and so much happier now than I ever would’ve been at any other time. I turned down a contract on Y&R, and this couldn’t have been more perfect. It’s exactly what I want. Exactly the role I want and the people I’m working with, and it’s just been incredible.”
You can watch Chris in his very personal talk on mental illness and more with Maurice Benard below.
So, what do you think of the twisty road Chris had to landing an audition to read opposite Laura Wright on General Hospital? Glad that Chris has taken on the role of Brennan after Charles Mesure made the decision to step away from the part earlier in the year? Share your thoughts via the comment section below.
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Giovanni Mazza Performs Aladdin’s ‘A Whole New World’ Ahead of Monday’s Crossover with Michael James Scott
Ahead of Monday’s second part of the crossover event between General Hospital and the Broadway musical Aladdin, featuring Michael James Scott’s (Genie) appearance in Port Charles, the ABC and GH social media team has released a montage of Emma (Braedyn Bruner) and Gio (Giovanni Mazza) in the Big Apple complete with Giovanni Mazza’s own rendition on the violin and the guitar, no less, of the signature song, “A Whole New World.”
Michael James Scott, who in story, knew Gio when the young man played violin in the orchestra pit of Aladdin, is set to perform at Curtis Ashford’s Savoy nightclub. In a preview of Scott’s performance, Mazza said in an interview with On the Red Carpet, “That guy has the most energy I’ve ever seen out of anybody. It was nuts to see him on Broadway and then when he came to ‘GH,’ he did a fantastic performance. He did a new, cool rendition of ‘Friend Like Me,’ and I think fans are really gonna enjoy it because it’s really cool to see a performance like that on ‘GH.'”
Meanwhile over this weekend, General Hospital is once again showcasing the musical talents of Giovanni Mazza, who is a classically trained violinist who has performed multiple times on the soap opera, but recently at the LA Lakers playoff game half time show, with his rendition on the violin of Michael Jackson’s Smooth Criminal and now the beloved song from Aladdin.

Photo: ABC
Viewers also first learned Mazza played guitar, when he accompanied Tabyana Ali as Trina during an open mic scene at the reopening of Charlie’s. Now he plays once again in his version of “A Whole New World.”
It appears that GH is now found one of the young couples that viewers are gravitating to. Bruner shared on Emma and Gio, “I think we’re just growing in love. Like I feel we are constantly taking the next step and leveling up in our relationship.”
Check out Gio’s rendition of A Whole New World below.
Now let us know, are you a fan of the Emma and Gio relationship? What do you think about the multi-talents of Giovanni Mazza? Interested in seeing Michael James Scott sing on Monday at the Savoy? Share your thoughts in the comment section.
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Chris McKenna On Jack’s Reaction to Carly Cheating On Him with Valentin: ‘Heartbreak and Absolute Rage and Humiliation’
The stage is set for next week on General Hospital, after yesterday’s May 1 cliffhanger, when Brennan (Chris McKenna) sneaks into Carly’s (Laura Wright) house and heads up to her bedroom, bursts in the door and finds her between the sheets, albeit at that moment alone.
However, Jack is already armed with plenty of ammo, he saw two glasses of wine in Carly’s kitchen, Josslyn (Eden McCoy) already lit the fire, by telling him her mother was seeing someone else, the WSB bureau chief then went to visit Carly’s ex, Sonny (Maurice Benard). The mobster’s reaction pretty much sold Jack that Carly must be sleeping with another man.
As Jack goes to check out the situation to confirm his suspicions, Carly and Valentin (James Patrick Stuart) have just hit the sheets, after fighting their attraction once again for each other. Now comes the moment of truth that Carly has been sleeping with Brennan’s sworn enemy, Valentin.

Courtesy/ABC
In a preview of what’s to come, Soap Opera Digest spoke to both Chris McKenna and Laura Wright where they talked about the upcoming scenes. McKenna expressed, “This has been coming for such a long time.” He also previews, “Brennan comes at her pretty aggressively.”
THREE’S COMPANY
Wright added, “Carly didn’t expect Brennan to walk into her bedroom! He doesn’t have a key. It’s late at night. She thinks she and Valentin are in the clear. She sees that he’s so angry and so worried about being cheated on… but not that he’s sorry for lying to her face or because her daughter is in danger because of him!”
As to how Jack will handle the situation from here and finding out that Carly is with Valentin, McKenna confirms, to expect, “heartbreak and absolute rage and humiliation” from Jack. He’s thinking, ‘This can’t be real. This can’t have happened. I can’t be this stupid. I can’t have been this blind.’ And as to Jack’s current state of mind, coming into the situation, “Jack is drunk and a little unhinged and the audience finally gets a glimpse of what’s going on underneath that rigid exterior.”
Needless to say, the fallout will be huge, and McKenna is proud of the trios work in the scenes, sharing that Laura Wright was a fantastic as ever, and that GH’s executive producer, Frank Valentini was on the set the entire time with Laura, James and him, making this story point play out to its full effect.
So, are you excited to see how what goes down between Brennan, Carly and Valentin and the fallout? Do you think this will cement Carly and Valentin as a couple, or will Carly regret what she’s done to Jack? Weigh-in on how you hope this all plays out via the comment section below.
General Hospital
‘General Hospital’s’ Jonathan Bennett Receives 3 ‘Critics Choice Real TV Awards’ Nominations for Hallmark Series, ‘Finding Mr. Christmas’
Many things are coming up roses for Jonathan Bennett! On the heels of the news that he is set to debut this month in the role of Joe Fitzpatrick on General Hospital, who is rumored to be a new love interest for Lucas Jones (Van Hansis), comes the news that Bennett’s reality series, Finding Mr. Christmas has received 3 nomination for the Critics Choice Real TV Awards.
Bennett’s Hallmark Channel series finds itself in tough competition alongside fellow nominees: RuPaul’s Drag Race (MTV), Squid Game: The Challenge (Netflix), Survivor 50 (CBS), Top Chef (Bravo) and The Traitors (Peacock). In addition, Jonathan himself is nominated for Best Show Host and the series participants as the Best Ensemble Cast in an Unscripted Series.
The Critics Choice Association (CCA) revealed the nominees for the eighth annual Critics Choice Real TV Awards on Thursday, which recognize excellence in nonfiction, unscripted and reality programming across broadcast, cable and streaming platforms. Winners will be announced online at CriticsChoice.com on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, at 9:00am PT/12:00pm ET.

Photo: Hallmark
Taking to his Instagram to celebrate the nominations, GH’s Bennett, enthused, “3 Critic Choice Nominations! I’m so proud of the FINDING MR CHRISTMAS and to be in the company of all the legends in all these categories is so surreal! Congrats to Hallmark Channel and to our nominated cast and nominated show and everyone who made this magical show possible. This is crazy! This gives FMC 6 Critics Choice nominations in 2 years. Not bad for a little show on Hallmark Channel. What are your thoughts on our show?” Jumping first into the comment thread was one of his new GH co-stars, Dominic Zamprogna (Dante) who expressed, “Yeah buddy!!!🔥🔥”
In the series, Bennett, the host and co-creator spends eight weeks guiding 10 aspiring actors through a series of “festive face-offs” and acting challenges alongside actors like soap opera notables, Hunter King (ex-Summer, Y&R) and Alison Sweeney (Sami, DAYS). Along the way, they develop their skills and a bond with one another. The show, which is available on Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Plus, highlights LGBTQ+ representation with openly gay contestants vying to be the next Hallmark star.
It should be noted that Traitors received the most Critics Choice Real TV Award nominations with 6 nods, followed by Dancing with the Stars with 4.
Bennett is very familiar to daytime fans having started his career as JR Chandler on All My Children in 2000-2001, before landing the part of Aaron Samuels in the motion picture, Mean Girls in 2004 starring Lindsay Lohan, which would become his breakout performance.
You can check out the full list of Critics Choice Real TV Award nominations here.
So, excited for Jonathan Bennett’s General Hospital debut this month? Have you ever watched Finding Mr. Christmas on Hallmark? Let us know via the comment section below.
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