Soaps Crisis Averted: Rebecca Herbst Will Stay at ‘General Hospital’
No one stirs up controversy quite like Rebecca Herbst. TV Insider can exclusively confirm that the intensely popular actress, who plays Elizabeth Webber on General Hospital, has signed a new multi-year deal with the ABC soap. This news puts an end to weeks of fan outrage that was triggered by a Daytime Confidential report stating Herbst and the network were at loggerheads over a new contract. In fact, things looked so gloomy for the star that she was reportedly in talks with NBC’s Days of Our Lives.
This isn’t the first time Herbst’s status at GH has left her devoted following in a foaming-mad frenzy. The actress was fired from GH in 2011 after 14 years with the soap and her costars didn’t hold back on Twitter. Her leading man, Jonathan Jackson (Lucky), told fans he was “heartbroken over the news about Becky” and declared her “irreplaceable.” Tyler Christopher (Nikolas) tweeted, “I have never been as shocked as I am now over Becky being let go,” while Kelly Monaco (Kelly) said the loss of Herbst made her “worry about the future of Daytime.” Fans were similarly distraught, and made their feelings known to ABC—big time. Four weeks later, Herbst was rehired.
An ABC spokesperson tells us there will be no interruption in Herbst’s appearances on GH due to the contract stall. And, with that, our long national nightmare is over. Congrats to everybody! Now here’s what the lady herself has to say.
Your fans are unbelievable! I’ve been writing about soaps for 2,000 years and have never seen such devotion.
I’m pretty lucky. They’re a very close-knit group and they’ve followed me and Elizabeth for almost 19 years. I am so grateful for that. They literally got me through the contract [talks] day by day. When I was doubting myself, and thinking that I might not be able to stay on GH, I would read their comments on the Internet and feel so secure in whatever decision I made. I knew it was going to be okay, no matter what. They sent flowers and cupcakes. Everything they did throughout the last two months has been remarkable. I wish I could hug them all.
How were you feeling during this whole negotiation process?
I felt so bad that I couldn’t interact with the fans and answer all their questions, but you’re not allowed to talk when these contract things are going on. That’s just the way it is. There was a lot of speculation that I was unhappy at GH, which was never the case. I love my job. I love the people I work with. By not saying something, I was kind of making it worse. It was so hard keeping quiet.
Many of your supporters were also assuming you were not pleased with the writing, especially when Elizabeth withheld the truth about Jake being Jason.
And that was not true, either. I’m an actor. I go in and do what’s on the page and then I go home. I don’t believe it’s my place to dictate storyline. People were saying that I was upset about the Jake/Jason story when, in fact, I embraced it. It ended up being a lot of fun. This was just a really long and difficult and [laughs] highly emotional negotiation this time.
Were you in talks with Days?
I don’t know if I can comment on that. I will say that other shows definitely showed interest in me. They showed a lot of support for my leaving GH, if that’s what I ultimately chose to do. I just shouldn’t name any one particular show. The fact that I received interest from the other soaps only added to the speculation I was unhappy. Word got around. I guess when you’ve been on a show for nearly 19 years, other shows respect that.
Can you say what the specific contract issues were? Was it the money? Your weekly episode guarantee?
I can’t talk about the specifics, but I kind of equate it to this: When you work together with a company for this long of a period you become a family, and from that you fight like family. And we did fight! But a good thing came out of this. [Executive producer] Frank Valentini and I had a lot of heart-to-hearts, and I have a newfound respect for him and for how much he loves the show. I walked into his office thinking nobody could love GH as much as I do, but I can see that he really, honestly, wants this show to do well. And he got to know me a little better, as well. We can now see where the other is coming from, and we had never had that opportunity. We’d never had that kind of a meeting. So that was awesome.
When was your contract up?
It was coming up this weekend—Saturday or Sunday, I can’t remember which. So it was down to the wire.
You might have gone on to another show and found great success. Did part of you want to give that a try?
Sure, I could have gone someplace else and started a whole new character and part of that was a little exciting. And it’s way exciting to have other shows interested. All of that love you get is really wonderful but, at the end of the day, GH is my home. I feel I have been loyal to GH to a fault, but I am really happy with the way it worked out. The story that [headwriters] Jean Passanante and Shelly Altman have written for me sounds really intriguing. Frank is very enthusiastic about it and, from the little he has told me, I’m really looking forward to it. It’s all good. But these past two months have been the most stressful time for me ever.
Even more than when GH fired you?
When I was let go in 2011, it was different. I got called into the office and was told, “Becky, we’re sorry but we’re letting you go.” They cut me clean. It was done fast. I had no choice in the matter. But this was so different and so much harder because I did have a choice. I had a lot to figure out. What do I want for my life? My career? My family? There were just so many factors involved. So I’m feeling pretty blessed with the way it turned out, especially in this town where work is hard to come by. [Laughs] But I do have a feeling that my fans would have followed me anywhere—even if I wound up working at Macy’s!
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Comments are closed on this story.
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R
Becky is such a classy lady. I will admit that Liz has never been a favorite of mine, dating back to her teen years, but I think GH is smart to keep her. She has a large, loyal fanbase and Becky seems to be dedicated. I wish her well, congratulations to her and her fans.
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C
You know how powerful what you are saying and is appreciated, by me and other fans of Becky Herbst? A whole lot and I had to write something because there are so many Sam fans that have gone so far to think that loving Sam means hating Liz AND the actress. Why can't some figure out the actress and the character are not the same person? I'm glad there are soap watchers like yourself that can see and understand the difference. I am a fan of Kelly Monaco but I'm not thrilled with the character Sam and this new Jason right now and how they pit two women against each other for a man when it diminishes both of them. Otherwise I like Sam when she's with her family and has her detective work and stays strong. I am also a fan of Liz and her story, and I realize that if I was in Liz's corner even when she's doing wrong, then the actress must be doing something right. I think this decision to keep her is a great thing for her, her fans, and anyone dedicated to the show.
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B
This woman is such a sweetheart. I'm glad they came to a decision. Finally!
She is absolutely right, I would've followed her to whichever remaining soap she landed. Although I'm glad she stayed with GH. Hopefully her loyalty will be rewarded.
Please give this heroine the story she deserves. We have all waited long enough.
*Thanks for the article, Michael.
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B
I so agree with absolutely everything you said!
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B
What a class act-so gracious. I'm so glad they worked it out and she is staying I haven't watched the show since Nathan spoke about her contract to fans because I thought she was leaving and I didn't want to support the show. Now I can catch up on GH! I loved Liz with Jason, but I'm fine that she's not as long as they give her a really good storyline. GH has do something good to make it up to her and all of her loyal fans.
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C
Yes, Becky, we would have followed you to Macy's!
Congratulations on your new contract!
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R
Thank God! Becky has been loyal to GH for 18+ years and tptb should never have treated her this way. She plays a legacy character, is talented and has a dedicated fan base. Liz is my favorite character but if Becky had left I'd have never watched GH again and I would have followed her to whatever soap she'd have landed on.
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G
Huge sigh of relief. We love Becky & would have followed her wherever she decided to go but I would have missed GH...
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G
Heck yes we would follow her to Macy's. I am so happy for Becky!
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B
Great news! I've been really enjoying Liz's story these last few months and would have been disappointed had she left. Glad everyone was able to work things out.
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C
I wish they would bring her character's grandmother, Audrey, in for an episode or two. I miss seeing older people on the soaps.
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P
This is such welcome news! I've watched GH since the days of Jagger and Karen, but the ONLY reason I still watch is Rebecca Herbst. There's no chance I would have stayed with the show if she'd left. I'd go wherever she went.
Thanks so much for brining us this news and cause to celebrate! It doesn't get better than Becky Herbst in daytime. Only thing left? Give her the leading lady status she has earned and deserves!
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O
Thank you Michael for the interview, lately there has been so much press for other people on the canvass like NLG, Geary and Maurice Bernard, and while they have their fans they tend to grab the lion's share of publicity when others like Becky have been as important if not more important for defining GH over the last two decades. i would like to know, though, why TPTB haven't respected her as much as the fans. It is puzzling--twice the fans have had to fight to keep her on the show. Why should they have to do it? It isn't as if she isn't a terrific actress or that her fan base is invisible. It isn't good management, perhaps that should be your next investigation.
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Go, Becky! Go! I'm disconcerted that she had to fight for a decent contract in the first place, but hopefully, they now know and respect her worth. And I would have totally followed her to Macy's! lol
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B
Frank Valentini needs to be fired. He is the least talented EP the show has had in its entire history. Terrible businessman (think PP disaster, which has the potential to cost Disney millions), terrible at hiring talent (think, OLTL pets, Michelle Stafford, which, two years later and many viewers still find a pointless waste of story line, or Billy Miller, who try as he does is NOT Jason), terrible at putting the show together (too large of a cast, and as this shows, negotiations over low balling GH vets to hire OTHER uninteresting soap stars. If all he brings to the table is staying on budget, is there SERIOUSLY no one else who could do that but also put out a better show?
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O
The Liz character is boring and very past her expiration date. I ff and just can't bring myself to stand her, though I've tried. I tried again when they paired her with AJ. But she's just awful. So awful. I would have been pleased to see the actress move on and into a better role. But oh well.
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How can Elizabeth be past her expiration date when Sonny, Laura, Bobbie, Scotty, Lucy, Kevin, etc.. have all been on the show longer?!
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I'm actually kind of disappointed. I would have liked very much to see Becky take on a new character. (Full disclosure - I don't hate Liz, but in 19 years I've never managed to become a fan either.)
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So proud to be a fan of Rebecca Herbst. She is as classy as they come. I will never understand why General Hospital thinks that she's not worth the same if not more than the "Soap Hoppers" they have brought in of late. Selfishly I'm glad she stayed so that I didn't have to learn a whole new show. Maybe this time TPTB have gotten the message? Hope springs eternal. As Mr. Valentini said in a tweet on Friday Elizabeth=GH and GH=Elizabeth.
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G
I really love Becky in person but GH alway give bad storyline i hope this time around we get a better story for our Elizabeth and her kids.
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R
Congrats on staying around Becky! I know her huge fanbase is relieved also. Proves that when enough people speak up, TPTB certainly will listen. I don't like the way Liz has been written in the last year, so hopefully they can write a great storyline for her that doesn't revolve around Jason and Sam 24/7. She is a legacy character and there is more to her than just chasing after Jason all of the time and scheming with Nicholas. They should focus more on her relationships with her sons and SORAS Cam to be teenager and looks like they may recast Jake. Also down the road, maybe Lucky can come back (I will take either Greg Vaughn or Jonathan Jackson) and they can reunite. Her character has been through so much over the years, so she most definitely deserves some happiness.
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I always respect the actors, even when I don't care for the character, I am very happy for becky, she 's a good actress. I loved it when she was with jj, they had a great chemistry. I just wish they would either bring lucky back or find elizabeth a man of her own again, please, NOT JASON!!. I am tired of watching her go from one leftover to the other, she's a better actress then that.Good Luck to you Becky. :^)
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G
Great news. She is one class act.
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I JUST HOPE SHE GET`S A POWERFUL STORY. I NEED HER IN A STORY WITH OUT SAM AND JASON.
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I am Glad Becky is staying
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