General Hospital
Steve Burton Speaks on How ‘General Hospital’ is Handling Monica’s Death, “I Applaud Them for Doing This Tribute the Right Way for Leslie Charleson”
This week, General Hospital fans shed many tears as Monica Quartermaine, played by the late Leslie Charleson who passed away earlier this year in January, was killed-off the show when the ailing character passed away quietly. Monica’s adoptive son, Jason (Steve Burton) found his mother dead, and has been dealing with the loss and the grief in heartbreaking fashion.
Steve Burton and Jane Elliot (Tracy), whose characters are two that are still on the Port Charles canvas that spent many years acting opposite Charleson were given the major moments thus far. In the episodes that aired, Tracy has also been trying to come to terms with the loss of Monica, which have also provided many hankie-inducing moments.
On the latest episode of That’s Awesome with Steve and Bradford Anderson (Spinelli), Burton talked on taping the scenes, and that there is more of a tribute to come as Leslie Charleson and her GH alter-ego, Monica Quartermaine, will continue to get a major sendoff.
Courtesy/ABC
Speaking on acting with Jane Elliot in the emotional scenes, Burton expressed, “She’s a master … a beast.” He added, “What they’re doing for Leslie is amazing. They’re giving her a proper tribute which takes some time. But we want that, the fans want that, she deserves it, of course. I don’t know what the progression is on the shows that are airing, but it’s going to be (in story) every other day for a stretch.”
Burton was very close with Leslie Charleson in real-life, and adored her, making playing Monica’s death all the more heart-tugging. Steve shared, “It wasn’t easy, obviously. It wasn’t easy for anybody. The psychological part of already going to Leslie’s celebration of life and then kind of moving past that and then reopening the whole thing again was super painful. I’m grateful that for the time that we had together.”
Courtesy/ABC
“I’ll say this, going to Leslie’s celebration of life, she touched so many people,” Burton recalled about Charleson’s memorial gathering. “I certainly didn’t know the extent of it and just how many people she touched. Many people showed up and just got up (and spoke) and said ‘she changed my life.’ It’s a huge testament to the character of that woman. It was such a blessing to play her son, and it was fun. It was bittersweet doing all this.”
Photo: ABC
Summing it up, Steve is proud of what GH is about to share with the audience, and gave high praise to the cast, expressing, “The work was incredible. I’m looking forward to the tribute, and for the fans to see it. Obviously, it’s going to be an emotional time. I’m just happy they’re doing it. Having somebody who’s passed, but still having their character kind of on (the canvas), can be kind of confusing, I think. I applaud them (GH) for doing this tribute the right way for Leslie Charleson.”
Watch the latest episode of the That’s Awesome with Steve and Bradford below, as they honor Monica and more.
Now, let us know, what do you think about how GH has handled Monica’s death on-screen thus far? Are you looking forward to seeing how the soap opera deals with her funeral and pays tribute to Leslie Charleson? Let us know via the comment section.
I think the template for good soap writing should adhere to the BJ’s storyline because it involved all the intricate players. Monica’s death seems to be adhering that template without a certain group of folks being ostracized from the main idea of the storyline. In this case, that would be the death of Dr Monica Quartermaine. So well done writers.
Um.. what? This must be another Harry. However, I agree with the sentiment the commentator is trying to express. The writers have done a good and respectful job conveying the significant impact Monica has had on her extended family, her associates and her friends.
I agree… there is a 2nd Harry. Some posts don’t read like Harry “the school teacher’ comment’s.
Maybe someone is making fun of me? It wouldn’t be the first time, and I doubt it will be the last!
Oh Harry, I am getting the same. I am with you buddy.
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.
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