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Roger Howarth Exits General Hospital

By Michael Fairman

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Photo: ABC

Daytime Emmy-winning star, Roger Howarth, has wrapped his run as General Hospital’s Dr. Austin Gatlin-Holt.  Viewers who saw Friday’s episode of the ABC daytime drama series know that Austin was shot twice in the chest and ultimately met his demise.

For Howarth, this marks the third role he has played on GH and departed. Previously, Howarth played Todd Manning, then Franco Baldwin. and most recently Austin Gatlin-Holt.

Initially, Roger came to General Hospital following the cancellation of One Life to Live and brought his Llanview alter-ego over to Port Charles in 2012. He continued the role till 2013, but when a legal battle with Prospect Park and ABC ensued, it forced him to vacate that role.

Photo: JPI

Later in 2013, Roger returned to GH but now as a recast Franco Baldwin, previously played by James Franco. He continued as Franco until the character was killed-off in 2021. Next, Roger returned one more time in the same year as Dr. Austin Gatlin-Holt and continued the role until he finished taping back in October of 2023.

According to Soap Opera Digest who confirmed Howarth’s exit, the actor’s contract was up and was not going to be renewed as Austin’s exit was storyline-dictated.

Photo: JPI

Speaking with SOD, Howarth explained: “Several weeks ago, I got a phone call from somebody I’ve known for a very long time who I love very dearly (Executive Producer Frank Valentini) telling me that when my contract was up at ABC, I would not be offered a new contract and that the character of Austin would be killed, and that this was something that both wanted and needed to do to move story.”

The fan favorite actor also shared his reaction to finding out he had been let-go at GH: “It took me a minute to kind of adjust, to kind of hear the news; it took a second for me to let that settle in. And then, immediately, I realized how lucky I was to have been able to do something I really love doing for more than a decade with people who I really enjoyed working with. I’m a lucky guy. I had a great run and this was a decision made by people who make these kinds of decisions for a living.”

Photo: JPI

Roger also weighed-in on if he though that Austin just wasn’t as well-developed as Franco and Todd were previously. He shared: “I don’t feel like I’ve been slighted in any way or that there was bad juju around these decisions. I think that the writers and the producers and the directors work really hard to entertain a really loyal and dedicated audience and I hope that they succeed in thrilling the audience for another 60 years. I will say this: I’m really proud of myself – like, totally truthfully, honest to God, I always tried my hardest. So for me, ultimately, there’s no loss. I know I did everything I could.”

Share your thoughts on Roger Howarth being killed-0ff General Hospital as Austin via the comment section below and if you could cast him on another soap opera, which one would you love to see him on next.

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This is not good… .now I’m going to have Frodd & Austin both down here with the same face, confusing the dragons.

For Hell’s sake Frank…. do NOT bring him back as a 4th character!

Roger makes (made) GH worth watching. Even though Austin never seemed the right fit—Todd Manning would! Storylines with Alexis and Aurora—no brainer!

Maybe Roger can bop on over to YandR and reconnect with his ATWTs mom:)
I adore Roger but the Austin character’s only chance was when he was being paired with Britt, but then Kelly departed permanently. It was nice to see him in scenes with Maura, another ATWT alum.

Unbelievable! He is one of the best actors in daytime television. I can think of many others on GH that should be let go, but certainly not Roger Howarth! What a DUMB decision! Ugh!!!

Totally agree

I agree totally dumb decision to kill Howarth off GH

GH let go of the wrong actor. Roger was finally getting the opportunity to become interesting and now he’s gone and we’re stuck FFing through Finn scenes. What disaster. I hope we get to watch Roger again somewhere else very soon. He’s very gracious considering what a mess GH made.

Not ever watching again

Well, that’s too bad. I was hoping they would bring him back as Todd but then again how do we know Todd would work on GH in the long run. I personally liked him as Franco but I realize that wasn’t a favorite of too many people. It would be great if Days could pick him up and create a role for him. Days needs a formidable villain at this point and Roger Howarth could be just the actor they need!

NO NO NO You can not let an actor this talented go

Please bring him back as Todd Manning. He’s a fantastic actor.

I agree wholeheartedly don’t let him go!!!! He could be the new Nicholas. I am sad and disappointed and grateful for his years on the show especially as Franco with. Liz and her family.

Nikolas? Seriously? Roger is about 5 years younger than Genie. No way he could play her son.

Seriously bad decision. They backed themselves into a corner when they killed off Franco. And THIS is the result.

I totally agree when killed off Franco. I think they pulled Austin Galtin-Holt out of thin air to please the fans. While I am really liking Finn and Elizabeth together, maybe they could resurrect Franco from the dead. It happens in the soap opera world all the time.

What a class act, Roger Howarth is. He is truly a fine daytime actor.

Roger is amazing. Mistake on GH to kill Franco off. I actually liked Frano & Elizabeth together with the boys. I love Roger and will miss him – he is a gem of an actor. GH’s loss – though, I never was interested in Austin, but his scenes with Maura West were always magnetic. Such chemistry there and… what a loss for GH.

I am tired of the dud that is Michael Easton. Silas, Hamilton etc etc are all snooze feasts. I don’t like Hamilton with Elizabeth – it’s still forced.
Enter the return as Franco… wishful thinking.

I really didn’t see this happening to Roger, shame on GH. Hey DAYS, get Roger on contract as the nu-Peter Blake.

He’s too short to be Peter Blake. That guy was well over 6 ft tall.

Great actor ! Will be missed!

The writing has been terrible for years know. Roger was one of the best actors on the show. The writers seem to kill the best actors.

I would support Roger coming back again. It won’t be the same without him. I’ve been following him since One Life To Live. Great actor!

I’ve followed Roger to any soap he was working on. He will be missed but I’ll find him again and that’s where my loyalty is. With Roger. Love him.

At this rate, give it a few months and he’ll be back as Nikolas!

Love Roger. So many others could have been axed. Not Roger. So disappointed.

I have watch him from way back on OLTL and always loved him as Todd. Then followed him to GH as Todd but then because of legal issues they killed Todd off then he came back as Franco and I loved him as Franco and was very upset when they killed him off. Then they brought Roger back as Austin Gaitland , unfortunately I never cared for this character… I would love to see him come back as Franco! Roger has always been a favorite and I’m really sorry to see him go.

This sucks!! They never should have killed off Franco and given him the roll of Austin!! The scripts written for Austin were awful. You will be missed Roger!! GH really screwed this up!!

Never thought Tod/Franco/Austin would be leaving GH!!! Have been watching him for 50 plus years! Why??? Will miss his face in the place! Didn’t think he would be killed off GH. Just assumed he was gonna reover from his wounds!!! If Mason could recover, why couldn’t Austin? I liked him with Ava. They were a good match. Really sorry to see Roger go. Best wishes for him.

Roger debuted on Loving in 1991 – 32 years on daytime including 11 on GH.

Very sad. I have been watching Rodger since before my son was born and he will be 32 in December. I hope he finds a great role in another soap..cause him coming back yo G H in another character is silly..
Hopefully Rodher will go to Prime Time in a great Show or Netflix Sjow or movie.

I’m upset, Roger Howarth, his exit is making me want to quit watching. Roger is pure talent walking on legs. This is one of the worse decisions, you don’t let the assets go, you nurture and grow. Well, I sat this, bring back OLTL

Bummed for him to leave…again. I am never a fan of change, particularly with long term characters like Molly and Christina. I think maybe they should have been killed off instead of trying to make new actresses fit, maybe in a car accident or explosion or something. When the former actresses were still in…they had no storyline…now more storyline, but hard to watch with new actresses. Oh well. I can do laundry while they are on, I guess. I’m thinking I was enjoying the sub writers’ material more than before, so we’ll see how this goes. If this killing off of Austin is from the old, then I have my answer.

Kate Mansi is rocking it as Kristina. She fits in quite well with the Davis clan and Sonny as well.

The Molly situation was beyond the show’s control at first. Scripts were written and Mansi was put on contract as Kristina. The first two Molly replacements were clear misses by casting. They can be forgiven for the first as they likely has a day’s notice to get someone in. The current one has longterm potential – good actress that looks the part.

Austin would be gone no matter which writers were in as Roger’s contract was expiring and the show needed to make a decision.

The first two Molly replacements were clear misses by casting.

Well, Mia Kriegel was only a temporary recast, so I am sure she was only available for a limited time. Then, we got the mis-recast. But the current Molly? She’s doing so well! A perfect blend for the role!

They never should’ve killed Franco.

I really like watch him act and he’s so good at it. I just want him in a role that he can develop the character. I only watch GH so therefore I want him back on. Bring Todd back to GH to live. Make him have a business where he could be in competition with ELQ !!

This is very disappointing news. I’ve been a Roger Howarth fan since his One Life to Live days, was glad when he came to GH as Todd Manning. There was so much they could have done with that character in the world of Port Charles, but the Prospect Park fiasco got in the way, and they had to adapt.

I wasn’t sold initially on the idea of Roger becoming Franco, but I’ll be damned if he didn’t make it work and make the role his own. Loved the chemistry he developed with Becky Herbst, and the family dynamic with him as the father figure to Cameron and the boys. For whatever reason they did it, and I know there are a lot of theories as to why, it was a huge mistake to kill off Franco. And I’ve already given my thoughts in another post about what a dud the Austin character was from the get go, none of that the fault of Roger.

They can say it was done to move the story along, but “your contract isn’t being renewed” sounds like budget cuts from ABC to me, which is a shame. Unfortunately, tough decisions have to be made sometimes. Whatever they have to do in order to keep GH going and on the air for as long as possible.

I’ll miss Roger on GH. He’s one of those actors that I love to watch in every scene, like Tony Geary was, like a Kin Shriner, that you never know what they’re gonna say, or what ad lib they’re gonna throw in. He’s a very talented actor, I’m sure he’ll have no problem finding work. He had a good 11 year run on GH.

Thanks Roger, it’s been fun watching you for all these years. Best of luck in whatever comes next!

No one ever comments how bad of a mob guy Sonny is. All these other bad characters come through, hurt people around Sonny and he is helpless. A real mob guy in Sonny’s position would have Cyrus taken out a long time ago. I am not a mob guy or a criminal and I would have taken him out by now.

This is a very easy fix general hospital. Have him be found by Ava and with all her money and connections have her put him somewhere that they can save him where he will sit for a while and wait. Then when the time is right he will come back all healed and go to war with the Quartermaines. Have him decide to run ELQ instead of being a doctor. Let him be the bad guy who takes it away from NED or Michael whichever way you want to go. He worked pretty good with Ava so let him become a full quartermaine and Eva could marry him for legitimacy. Then just for fun, have him and Sonny become best friends. I want to see them pal around and go drinking. I don’t want him to work for Sonny but more more on The Fringe like Luke was. Let’s see them karaoke together. LOL let’s see Ava get in trouble again and have sunny and Austin go and rescue her. All while he is running ELQ. Let’s let them put on the nurses ball next year. A really fun one that lasts the whole week like they used to. Both of them can be very funny use their humor. Let’s see Ava laughing so hard from them that she’s crying. Shake up these really strong serious people and let them be loose for a little while. Just my opinion.

I think it was time for Austin to be gone. Too many characters on show. Roger will get another good role in future. The. Cyrud part should be gone also.

This is indicative at how slipshod the writing has been on GH for the past few years. Dr. Gatlin-Holt was MOST interesting as the son of Jimmy Lee Holt and, as such, an heir to the family fortune! But the writers dismissed and tied up that storyline in a hurry to embed the character in this sh*tshow called The Many Lives of Cyrus Renault. What a waste!

Roger’s gracious; the contrast between him and Ingo is glaring. Roger was literally written off and blindsided three times now by GH. Granted, writing off Todd wasn’t GH’s fault because of the lawsuit but I’m not sure why they didn’t bring him back on once they legally could. They screwed him over big time with “Austin,” this mess of a character which never got off the ground, a character they promised him would be great, after they blindsided him by killing off Franco who was a popular character, But he leaves with a smile to the producer and the viewers, and some appreciative words (what he thinks about it may be different), expressing thanks that he was given eleven years of more soap work after the cancellation of OLTL). Ingo on the other hand is still hopping from TV to social media to whine about his OWN CHOICE to leave because he didn’t want the vax (which was and is his right to decide; I’m not arguing that) and suing for the loss of his job, which only insured that he’ll never be hired back.

I don’t know how GH can make this right for RH. Can they bring him back a fourth time? Would he chance it; would they? What a big opportunity they missed by not incorporating him into the Quartermaine family. I could just see him verbally sparring with Tracy. Siding with Ned agains Drew and Michael over ELQ. He could have brought back some of that good ol’d Quartermaine in-house fighting which the new Drew doesn’t. He’s just nasty, vicious, and obnoxious. Another ruined character, but I digress.

Austin was brought back as a Quartermaine and the writers just dropped the ball. That is THE way he would have tied into the canvas and could have been made a character we got to know and loved watching.

Granted, writing off Todd wasn’t GH’s fault because of the lawsuit but I’m not sure why they didn’t bring him back on once they legally could.

Because, supposedly, Disney-ABC wanted a no-r*pist canvas, hence why Franco was killed off, and why Todd did not return to Port Charles. And no, they shouldn’t hire him for a fourth role. That’s ridiculous; enough of re-hiring actors for third, fourth, fifth roles, etc. The cast *needs* to be trimmed, and this was the right choice for Disney-ABC to make.

Agree with Scott’s analysis. And, the show has nothing “to make right for Roger”. He was gainfully employed by GH for close to 12 years. As Austin, a lesser actor would’ve been released at one of the option periods in his contract. GH kept him the distance and chose not to renew.

Truth is, they should have made him Austin in the first place. Nothing wrong with a soap hiring actors from another soap. When Passions was cancelled, three of their lead actors went to Days of Our Lives. Two of those three are still there. But they didn’t bring their Passions characters with them, nor should they have. Bringing the OLTL characters to GH was the first mistake.

If they would have brought Roger on as Austin the first time around (and Michael Easton as Finn, for that matter), rather than disrupting the whole existence of GH to graft OLTL into it, only to abruptly cancel that due to “legal complications” those two could have been well established characters by now. A doctor who was part of the Quartermaine family tree should have had serious potential on GH… except by the time they got around to that, he had the shadows of Todd & Frodd following him everywhere (and don’t even get a Devil started on the whole fatally stupid Frodd project). So it was kinda hard to take Austin seriously as a character as a result. And that was BEFORE all the “Pawtuck Mafia” dragonshit was written in…. let alone their backtracking on that story so they could tie Cyrus into it.

General Hospital

GENERAL HOSPITAL Preview: Carly and Lulu Make Plans to Rescue Their Children; Anna Looks Determined to Secure Her Freedom

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This week on all-new episodes of General Hospital, the race is on! Can Lulu (Alexa Havins) and Dante (Dominic Zamprogna) get to Rocco (Finn Carr) and Britt (Kelly Thiebaud) in time to ensure their safety from Cullum (Andrew Hawkes)? Can Carly (Laura Wright) with the help of her brother, Lucas (Van Hansis) rescue Josslyn (Eden McCoy) from captivity at Wyndemere? These questions may be answered, plus the return of the one and only Anna Devane (Finola Hughes) are on tap!

In the just released General Hospital spoilers video for the week of June 22-26, Lulu tells her mother, Laura (Genie Francis), “Dante and I have to get to Rocco before Cullum!” Meanwhile, Rocco (Finn Carr) looks angered and emotional as Britt walks through their cabin hideout. Does Rocco know his parents are on the way to find them, or has Cullum already tracked them down to the British Virgin Islands?

Back in Port Charles, Carly is informing Lucas that his niece, “is a WSB agent.” She knows Josslyn (Eden McCoy) is being held against her will at Wyndemere, and she has to find a way to get her out. Lucas agrees with Carly’s plan of, “We go in and we don’t leave without Josslyn!” Elsewhere, Josslyn is looking worried for her future as she is stuck in captivity thanks to Cassius, Cullum and Sidwell!

Courtesy/ABC

FINOLA HUGHES RETURNS

The final moments of the teaser promo reveal Anna in a psychiatric clinic in France. We have not seen her for months after Cullum, Sidwell and Pascal fed her hallucinogenics to make her believe her arch nemesis, Cesar Faison was alive!

Now, the doctors walk towards her hospital bed, where we see the super spy calmly knitting. Is Anna back to normal and playing everyone to get out of her predicament, or does she still remain deeply traumatized … or both?

Take a look at the rest of the official GH spoilers for the week below.

MONDAY, JUNE 22
Willow gets an unwelcome surprise. Trina sticks to her guns. “Nathan” wants reassurance. Ethan advises Ava. Brook Lynn receives an update.

TUESDAY, JUNE 23
Dante cautions Liz. Laura learns a secret. Brook Lynn confides in Michael. Sonny challenges Ava. Chase makes a decision.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 24
Anna meets with her doctor. Carly makes a stunning confession. Britt extracts a promise. Cullum pulls a fast one. Gio and Emma hit the pool.

THURSDAY, JUNE 25
Josslyn clashes with Cassius. Lulu and Dante make a discovery. Chase receives a warning. Jordan seeks help. Alexis is summoned to the PCPD.

FRIDAY, JUNE 26
Anna takes a huge risk. Britt is in grave danger. Willow is in disbelief. Danny must act fast. Curtis jumps to the wrong conclusion.

Check out the latest General Hospital promo entitled, “Rescue Mission” below.

Now weigh-in: Do you think Anna is still mentally off-balance, or OK, and just pretending to be troubled to get out of France and get back to Port Charles? Will Josslyn finally be rescued, or will Carly and Lucas find themselves locked up with her? And, who will get to Britt and Rocco first? Cullum, or Dante and Lulu? Share your thoughts and theories via the comment section below.

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General Hospital

Maurice Benard Gives High Praise to ‘General Hospital’ Writers; Teases Upcoming Sonny Scenes with Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric

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With the highly-anticipated returns of Finola Hughes (Anna Devane) on this week’s June 24 episode of General Hospital, Steve Burton’s (Jason Morgan) upcoming return on July 13, which also serves as the ABC daytime drama’s 16,000 episode, things are about to fire on all cylinders in the story, as noted today by series star, Maurice Benard (Sonny Corinthos).

On Father’s Day, the three-time Daytime Emmy-winning actor and mental health activist took to his Instagram and expressed in a video that he has some unbelievable upcoming senes with the aforementioned Burton and Hughes. Add to that Nazneen Contractor (Justine Turner) and Rick Hearst (Ric Lansing), where Benard gave credit where credit is due to the GH writing team, which is led by co-head writers, Elizabeth Korte and Chris Van Etten..

In this video, Benard said, “I just want to get on here and say that I did some work with Steve Burton, Finola Hughes, Rick Hearst, Nazneen Contractor, and they’re all just fantastic. Truly fantastic. But, I want to say the writing was just exceptional. It truly was. It was exceptional. So, thankful for that kind of writing. I know writers don’t get the credit a lot, but I just want to say to the General Hospital writing team, keep rolling!”

GENERAL HOSPITAL PREVIEW

So now the question becomes, with a major tease like that, what is about to go down between Sonny, Anna, Jason, Justine and Ric? Will we finally get to the end of the line for Sidwell (Carlo Rota), as previously teased by the GH co-head writers? Will we learn what happened to Jason and Anna, fully? Will Justine and Sonny becomes closer or stop their liaisons? And what of Ric? Will he be true blue to his brother or double-cross him? There is a lot at stake as we move further into the summer and one that looks like it could be one of the more exciting ones in years!

FINOLA HUGHES CONFIRMED AMAZING SCENES WITH MAURICE BENARD

As a punctuation point to his video, Benard also shared this written message in the post: “I just did some wonderful scenes with Steve Burton, Rick Hearst, Finola Hughes and Nazneen Contractor and  and unbelievable writing, freaking amazing scenes that you will see in the near future on General Hospital.” In fact, Finola Hughes jumped in the post comment thread and responded, “I loved our scenes so much xxx”

Fans will most likely see all the scenes Benard referred to later in July, since GH tapes approximately six weeks ahead of air.

So, are you excited to see what Maurice is talking about? Are you hyped for what’s to come on GH? Any clue on what you think will go down between the main characters on the soap with the returns of Anna Devane and Jason Morgan to the mix? Weigh-in via the comment section below.

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General Hospital

‘General Hospital’ Alum Chad Duell Announces Upcoming Release of His First Single, ‘If You Need Me’

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In a surprise move, Daytime Emmy winner, Chad Duell (ex-Michael Corinthos, GH) is getting ready to unveil a new chapter of his career in music.

The former GH star, where he played the son of Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) and Carly Spencer (Laura Wright) for 15 years, has announced his new single, “If You Need Me” will drop on Friday, June 26. The single is now available for pre-order on Spotify and major music streaming platforms and is distributed by DistroKid.

Taking to his Instagram story over the weekend, to announce the pre-save of his new single, Chad expressed, “I’ll make a full post about what I’ve been up to and my music once it goes live next week, but you can pre-save my first single so it goes straight to your Spotify once it drops next week.”

Photo: CDuellIG

SINCE LEAVING GENERAL HOSPITAL

Previously, since his departure from the ABC soap opera. Chad starred alongside Zach Mendez in the world premiere of of Yum Yum at Annapolis, a new play written by Bruce Reisman. Duell last appeared on General Hospital on the January 21, 2025 episode.

The part was recast with Rory Gibson who debuted as the new Michael in May of 2025 during the Nurses’ Ball episodes and who has remained in the role since that time.

In an interview earlier this year on The Able Show, Duell said on his decision to exit the soap opera, “I was blessed to be part of that (show) for as long as I have, but what happens sometimes is if you’re doing the same thing, especially in a creative field for such a long time, you can get a little burnt out in a way. It can make you a little depressed, so that’s kind of what happened. On top of that, I had other things going on in my life at the time. My father passed away recently and I just needed a reset. So, I stepped away. A lot of times you have to go through some stuff to really step into that next level. I needed to kind of feel uncomfortable.”

So, what type of musical genre will Chad’s new song be? Country? Pop? Rock? Dance/Club? Something else? Let us know your thoughts via the comment section below, and if you are eager to hear the new single next week via the comment section below.

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Jonathan Bennett joins the cast of GH as Joe Fitzpatrick. Catch the latest promo! Leave a comment.Leave A Comment

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