"General Hospital" declined to renew the contract of actress Genie Francis, aka Laura Spencer. She has instead been demoted to recurring status, and may not show up again for a while (if ever).
Her agent, Arthur Toretzky, told Entertainment Weekly she'd only return if the story and timing were ideal:
"She did not want to leave the show as a series regular. It was not her choice to leave."
Genie Francis responded to the many fans (see below) who reached out to protest the circumstances of her departure:
I would like to thank all my wonderful fans for their support. It has made me feel so much better. 😇😍😘❤️
— Genie Francis (@GenieFrancis) January 23, 2018
Also, a very heartfelt thank you to @robinstrasser. I love actresses who support actresses.
— Genie Francis (@GenieFrancis) January 23, 2018
Genie Francis started on "General Hospital" in 1977 and was on-and-off the show in the decades since. Daytime Confidential first reported that GH wasn't renewing her contract. Whatever she wanted, you'd think they'd be amenable after her many years on the show. Her storyline as half of Luke and Laura made the series, and soap history.
"General Hospital" fans were not happy at the news, and they lashed out at executive producer Frank Valentini and ABC:
It's a damn shame #GH has - once again - failed to recognize the talent & popularity of the glorious @GenieFrancis. Mayor Laura taking down mob boss Sonny would have been storytelling gold. Fix this @GeneralHospital and @ABCNetwork! pic.twitter.com/UrNyKUbKp0
— Michael Logan (@TVGMLogan) January 20, 2018
Did Frank Valentini not consider the optics of bumping and reportedly devastating Genie Francis, #GH's biggest female star EVER, amid #TimesUp & #MeToo ? Women are marching today @womensmarch and daytime soaps, the genre created for them, values men over women consistently.
— Jamey_Giddens (@Jamey_Giddens) January 20, 2018
Call the @GeneralHospital #GH comment line (323) 671-4583 if you are upset with the decision to bump Genie Francis to recurring. #GenieIsGH
— Katie 👩🎨👨🎨🌹❤ (@Katie00901) January 20, 2018
Genie Francis IS #GH
— #GenieIsGH 👑 (@FrizFans) January 20, 2018
She is half of the duo that coined the Soap word "SuperCouple"
RETWEET if you want Laura Spencer front & centre! pic.twitter.com/tZtE8FLsaQ
Damn, I love #SoapTwitter! The @GenieFrancis fans are on 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥. And rightly so.
— Michael Logan (@TVGMLogan) January 21, 2018
It's not just Genie fans. It's GH fans in general fed up with bad treatment of the female vets by Frank.
— Kim Watson (@TxKimmie) January 21, 2018
Fed up with Frank's treatment of #GH vets period. Male or Female.
— KermitKlein (@KermitKlein94) January 21, 2018
I've watched #GH for 51 years. I've always felt that the heart and soul of the show passed from Steve Hardy to Laura. The utter disrespect shown toward Genie Francis may cause me to say "I'm done." Fix this @valentinifrank @nathanvarni @ABC_Publicity @ABCNetwork #TimesUpGH pic.twitter.com/ZXVMgESavq
— Raised On GH (@RaisedOnGH) January 21, 2018
General Hospital is the house Genie Francis built. If Frank Valentini can't grasp that. He's the one who needs to go. #GH
— Jamey_Giddens (@Jamey_Giddens) January 21, 2018
#GH Frank just kills the mayor story and sends Laura packing. Genie Francis deserved a hell of lot better than what she got it. The ole boys club continues behind the scenes. pic.twitter.com/jtCqJk927X
— rodrigo santana (@rodrigo1993) January 20, 2018
Unbelievable! Luke gets big send off when he RETIRES-And Laura @GenieFrancis gets CUT in the middle of her front burner story!! This is unacceptable #GH GENIE helped make this show what is! #GenieIsGH Make this right @valentinifrank @nathanvarni @ABCNetwork This is 2018 #Timesup
— Linda Janeway (@Janeway12004) January 23, 2018
Dear ABC, we the fans of #GH are furious about the unwarranted firing of Genie Francis. She is a soap legend, EXTREMELY popular. #GH routinely pays female stars less than the men. Fed up with rampant sexism, Genie built #GH. #TimesUp #BringGenieBack @bensherwood @channers3 pic.twitter.com/oBlcqtQRK7
— marmstr (@marmstron14) January 23, 2018
There are 2 petitions that I'm aware of for #GenieFrancis. One is at almost 7,000 signatures, the other at almost 16,000. My TL has been pretty much nothing but #GenieIsGH tweets for 48 hrs. And yet. Radio silence from @ABCNetwork. Way to show the fans you care.
— anna (@Petalouda8) January 23, 2018
As of today I have taken @GeneralHospital off of my DVR! You hurt @GenieFrancis you hurt all of her fans! I refuse to support a show that would just dump someone so important to the legacy to the show! @nathanvarni @bensherwood @ABCNetwork @vickiabc123 #GenieIsGH #FireFrank
— Cindy Allen (@cindy4419) January 23, 2018
"General Hospital" is currently airing Season 55 at 2 p.m. EST on ABC.
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