General Hospital: Kelly Monaco Leaving After 21 Years as Sam McCall

A longtime General Hospital fan favorite is scrubbing out: Kelly Monaco is exiting the ABC daytime soap after more than two decades, a source confirms to TVLine, and will make her final appearance as Sam McCall this fall.

The character of Sam McCall is set to be killed off, according to Soap Opera Network, who first reported the news, adding that Monaco was “blindsided” by the decision.

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Monaco made her General Hospital debut as Sam in 2003, following a three-year stint as Livvie Locke on spinoff Port Charles. Sam was introduced as a con artist and bad girl — the long-lost daughter of attorney Alexis Davis and mob boss Julian Jerome — but went on to become one of the pillars of the long-running soap. Monaco has been nominated for two Daytime Emmys, one for Port Charles in 2003 and one for General Hospital in 2006.

General Hospital has seen more than its share of upheaval as of late, recently reinstating Chris Van Etten as co-head writer along with Elizabeth Korte. Emma Samms is set to return as Holly Sutton next month, while Jonathan Jackson returned last week to reprise his role as Lucky Spencer. They must be doing something right, though: General Hospital won its fourth straight Daytime Emmy for best daytime drama this June.

Will you miss Sam, GH fans? Let us know in a comment below.

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