Kelly Monaco is leaving the long-running soap opera General Hospital after 21 years on the show.
The 48-year-old actress, who has played Sam McCall for more than two decades, is set to exit the daytime drama series in the fall.
On Monday, the Soap Opera Network reported that Monaco was “blindsided” to learn that her longtime character would be “killed off” from the show.
She recently learned that her role on the show has been canceled by the network and will be her final appearance in Port Charles by the end of the year.
She was previously removed from the show in 2020, but was only a temporary replacement due to health issues at the time.
Kelly Monaco is leaving the long-running soap opera General Hospital after 21 years on the show.
After playing Sam McCall for more than two decades, the 48-year-old actress will be leaving the daytime drama series in the autumn, saying goodbye to Dominic Zamprogna's character Dante Falconeri.
Previously, Monaco played Livy Locke on the spinoff series Port Charles.
She played the role for three years before the show was canceled and she was asked to star in its long-running sequel, General Hospital.
Monaco first joined the series in October 2003 and has since appeared in more than 2,200 episodes of “General Hospital.”
She also competed on the inaugural season of Dancing with the Stars in 2005, where she was the first winner of the Mirrorball Trophy.
In 2012, she returned for the show's 15th season, the All-Star season.
That year, she placed third with professional dance partner Val Chmerkovskiy.
He later guest-starred on General Hospital as a boxer.
In 2017, Monaco returned to Dancing with the Stars for its 25th season.
On Monday, the soap opera network reported that Monaco was “blindsided” to learn that her longtime character would be “killed off” from the show.
Monaco first joined the series in October 2003 and has since appeared in more than 2,200 episodes of General Hospital.
She has been nominated twice for a Daytime Emmy Award throughout her career for her acting skills.
In 2003, she was nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role in Port Charles.
Three years later, she was nominated for Best Actress in a Drama Series for her performance in General Hospital.
This comes shortly after her co-star Steve Burton reprised his role as Jason Morgan in March after being fired in November 2021.
This follows co-star Steve Burton reprising his role as Jason Morgan in March after being fired in November 2021.
Emma Samms will also be returning to the show in the autumn as Holly Sutton-Scorpio.
News of Monaco's departure comes shortly after it was revealed that co-writer Patrick Mulcahy would also be leaving the show.
It was also revealed earlier this month that Chris Van Etten would be returning to lead the writing team alongside Elisabeth Korte.
And in Monaco's place, Star Trek: Discovery star Sawandi Wilson will join the cast to play a character called Isaiah, who has a “connection” with Jonathan Jackson's Lucky.