‘General Hospital’s Kirsten Storms Shares First Look at Her Return to Set

General Hospital fans won’t have to wait too much longer to see Kirsten Storms back on their screens as Maxie Jones.

The actress confirmed that she’s back on the set of the ABC soap opera in a Wednesday, January 21, Instagram post. “Boom. 2026 already…that was fast. Back at work!” she wrote alongside a mirror selfie. “Seriously missing my BugBug though. California doesn’t feel right without her here. 🌙💕🌊 @generalhospitalabc #ghc.” (Storms shares her daughter, Harper Rose, 12, with her ex-husband, Brandon Barash.)

Fans shared their excitement over Storms’ upcoming return in the post’s comments. “Omg welcome back!! You were missed!! I can’t wait to finally see Maxie’s reaction to Nathan being back!! ❤️,” one person wrote. Another added, “Whew! Yes honey! So glad you’re back! You better keep ya man tho and let lulu have that ZOMBIE Nathan! ❤️.”

Someone else shared, “Welcome back, glad to see your doing ok and can’t wait to see you [back] on GH 🫶🏻🙏🏻🫶🏻.” A different user commented, “Soo happy that you’re feeling well enough to return. You have been missed!!!” A separate person posted, “So happy your back and can’t wait to see if maxie will be able to prove her dead husband isn’t really the man she fell in love with or not 😊.”

 

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Along with the set photo, Storms also gave fans a glimpse at her updated short, blonde hairstyle. “First, @abrahamjosephr..I did not have to color correct (or call you for an emergency color correction appt) and I fiiiinally *successfully* lighted my hair with @sallybeauty products,” she captioned the Sunday, January 25, Instagram pic. “Not sure why (I know why…) but since the ‘green hair disaster’ during Covid, I’ve needed to figure out how to concur the kitchen beautician skills. Still won’t attempt to do acrylic nails again. Ever. I’m holding this win in my heart for a little bit. 🤘🏼.”

Fans loved Storms’ new look, as one person commented, “So very beautiful Kirsten! Can’t to see you back on GH. Been a fan for years. 😍😍😍.” Another user added, “Gorgeous color! So glad you are returning to GH!”

A rep for General Hospital confirmed to Soap Opera Digest earlier this month that Storms will officially return during the show’s February 12 episode.

Nicole Paggi temporarily took over Storms’ role on General Hospital in July 2025. At the time, Storms revealed via Instagram that she was on a break from the series amid her move from Los Angeles to Nashville. She last appeared as Maxie in an August 2025 episode before taking another extended hiatus from the show.

 

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In an October 2025 Instagram post, Storms revealed that health issues largely prompted her move, as doctors discovered she had a brain aneurysm during a January 2025 scan. “It was clear I needed to change some things in my life asap,” she explained. “For my own personal reasons, no longer living in Los Angeles was very important to me. The biggest reason for the move was Harper, but a lot of it was for my physical and mental health. And my overall happiness.”

In another Instagram update last month, Storms said that she was in the “gray zone” to undergo her aneurysm procedure, noting that it’s “not at the mandatory surgery size.”

“Basically, I can keep monitoring it – or have the coiling done, BUT he told me I wasn’t in immediate/’ OMG! it’s going to burst tomorrow!’ kind of danger. Obvi, great news. 💁🏼‍♀️,” she continued. “Trying to see if I’m comfortable with the “wait and see if it gets worse” plan. I do know that I am not eager to hop right on the operating table.”

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