‘General Hospital’ LEAK: Hayden Barnes Recast Actress Revealed
A General Hospital leak says Hayden Barnes‘ recast is a done deal and Rebecca Budig won’t return – but who will play the part? If this news from behind the scenes is true, then the ABC drama chose a veteran soap actress who already has ties to GH.
Hayden Barnes Recast on General Hospital – Rebecca Budig Out?
You may recall it was in 2017 that GH writers abruptly cut Hayden Barnes out of the character canvas. Rebecca Budig personally confirmed (see below) in June that year that she’d be leaving the show. Although she was on contract to play Hayden, the showrunner (whom she nicely thanked), terminated her contract early, per reports.
Budig’s a class act and didn’t seem to harbor a grudge for her General Hospital axing. Then, they brought her back as Hayden in 2019 to hand over her daughter with Hamilton Finn (Michael Easton) to him. To end that run, Nikolas Cassadine (Marcus Coloma) gaslighted her into leaving town.
Unfortunately, Hayden is being written off the canvas. I have to thank @valentinifrank and @ABCNetwork for giving me this opportunity.
— Rebecca Budig (@RebeccaBudig) June 28, 2017
Now, with almost non-stop name drops of Hayden Barnes, it’s certain she’s back to General Hospital soon. But, the leak indicates it won’t be Ms. Budig in the role. Instead, the powers that be at GH reportedly inked a deal with another soap actress with ties to the sudser. But who is it?
Soap Veteran Marie Wilson Takes over GH Role?
The General Hospital insider says Marie Wilson will take on the role of Hayden. She’s a familiar face to longtime GH viewers. She played Dr. Karen Wexler as the last actress in that part before she died. If you don’t know Karen’s history, she was Scott Baldwin‘s (Kin Shriner) daughter.
Scotty still hates Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) for getting her hooked on drugs when she worked as an exotic dancer at his club. When Wilson took over the role, Karen migrated from General Hospital to its spinoff Port Charles. She also appeared in the long-running role of Meg Snyder on As The World Turns.
More recently, she played Summer Townsend on Days of Our Lives, but that character was killed off this Fall. Now, the General Hospital source says ABC’s bringing her back to the daytime drama as recast Hayden Barnes. However, there’s no official confirmation from the network or the actress.
When Will Hayden be Back to General Hospital?
With accusations flying at Nikolas about hiring someone to shoot Hayden Barnes, she’s bound to return soon. And remember, Rebecca’s biological father, Jeff Webber is also ripe for a recast and return. Hayden’s sister, Elizabeth Webber (Rebecca Herbst) doesn’t want to see Jeff, but his arrival seems assured.
Sweeps at General Hospital runs through November 24. It could be that they’ve already had recast actors for Jeff and Hayden on-set filming. There could be a sweeps’ shocker before too long. However, there are no official GH spoilers indicating the return of either.
General Hospital aired an intense confrontation between Nikolas and Shawn Butler (Sean Blakemore). That came after Spencer Cassadine (Nicholas Chavez) accused his dad of trying to kill his stepmother. Now, Shawn thinks Hayden deserves justice for her shooting. Plus, there is no reason for her to stay away anymore.
It was Nikolas’ fake threats that drove her away on General Hospital. Remember, he hired someone to terrify Hayden on the docks. So, with all that settled, there’s no reason to avoid Port Charles – and every reason for Hayden Barnes to return. Especially with Violet Finn (Jophielle Love) missing her mother.
Soap Dirt will update you when there is more information or confirmation that Marie Wilson replaces Rebecca Budig in the Hayden Barnes recast.