“Melrose Place ”Bad Girl Laura Leighton Recalls Nurse Being 'Worried' About Husband's Safety After Surgery (Exclusive)

The actress reflects on a very unusual fan encounter that occurred soon after the primetime drama aired its final episode

For some viewers, it can be difficult to separate actors from the roles they convincingly play. Just ask Laura Leighton.

Shortly after Melrose Place went off the air in 1999, Leighton and her husband, former costar Doug Savant, went to the hospital so the actor could get ankle surgery. Once a nurse entered the room, however, things went awry when she mistook Leighton for her character Sydney Andrews and Savant for his character Matt Fielding.

“I was in the hospital room with him [Doug] as he was preparing for surgery — or then recovering from surgery — and the nurse came in and was like, ‘Why is she here?’” Leighton recently told PEOPLE. “She was really worried that I was going to do him harm. She was very confused on what was what. And she just had it in her mind that Sydney was there to hurt Matt in the hospital … That was funny and weird.”

Leighton, 55, portrayed Sydney for more than 125 episodes of Melrose Place, from 1993 to 1997 — a memorable run largely marked by mischief and mayhem onscreen. Savant’s character Matt, meanwhile, was an openly gay man who, over the course of 160 episodes from 1992 to 1998, was the subject of physical assault and fired by his employer for his sexual orientation. He was eventually killed off in a car crash.

Related: 'Melrose Place' Alums Reunite on New 'Fantasy Island' Reboot — See the First Look!

But the reality for Leighton and Savant couldn’t be further from the complex drama depicted on Melrose Place. The two married in 1998 after Savant, 60, realized he’d found his soulmate.

“We were friends on the set, but then it became, 'Oh my God, this person I think is so perfect is right here,’” Savant told PEOPLE in 2007. “The best thing that happened to me as a result of Melrose was meeting my wife.”

The couple, who share two children — Lucy and Jack — have since gone on to play other notable roles onscreen. Savant was a regular fixture on Desperate Housewives, playing Tom Scavo from 2004 to 2012. He has also appeared on 24, NCIS, The X-Files and 9-1-1.

Leighton went on to play Ashley Marin on Pretty Little Liars from 2010 to 2018 and appeared on L.A.'s Finest, Dynasty and Fantasy Island, the last of which reunited her onscreen with former Melrose Place castmates Daphne Zuniga and Josie Bissett.

Related: Melrose Place's Courtney Thorne-Smith, Laura Leighton and Daphne Zuniga Team Up for New Rewatch Podcast (Exclusive)

She also recently teamed up with Zuniga and Courtney Thorne-Smith for the Melrose Place rewatch podcast entitled Still the Place. Produced by iHeartPodcasts, Still the Place will see the three actresses revisit the soapy primetime drama, reminiscing about each episode, sharing behind-the-scenes stories and hosting special guests that include the original cast and crew.

For Leighton, the podcast is an opportunity to look back on a show that was a veritable pop culture phenomenon, landing the cast on magazine covers and inspiring viewing parties. It was unequivocally a “special” time, the actress acknowledges.

“I wish I could do the things we did then with my understanding now, because it was so much and we were so tired,” she explains, adding, “You just want to be home. I would like to do those things now and realize how special it was.”

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Still the Place is available to stream wherever you get your podcasts, and Melrose Place is available to stream on Paramount+.

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