General Hospital (GH) likely recast Heather so that Alley Mills could bring a new interpretation and energy to the beloved character.
General Hospital (GH) has managed to stay on the air for a very long time thanks to its excellent writing, plotlines and characters.
One of the characters that has really made an impact on the show is Heather Webber, who has recently been recast. Heather Webber is now played by Alley Mills.
Why do people still watch General Hospital?
General Hospital has been on the air since 1963 and is listed in the Guinness World Records as the longest-running American soap opera in production.
Even though the show has been in production for almost 60 years, it still has loyal fans who tune in to watch the show even in 2022, with an average of over 2 million viewers per week.
Some of the many things that have kept fans of the show coming back over the years, include the intricate writing on the show, complex plots that keep viewers guessing, and the beloved and interesting characters on the show.
All of which give General Hospital or GH a unique selling point and keeps it feeling fresh even after so many seasons.
Why did GH recast Heather?
One of the characters on General Hospital that has always managed to bring a new level of drama and intrigue to the show is Heather Webber.
Even though the role of Heather has been played by a few different actresses over the years, most notably by soap opera veteran Robin Mattson, it was recently revealed that this role has been recast yet again.
In the episode of General Hospital which aired on 28 October 2022, it was finally revealed that Alley Mills would be joining the cast as Heather for the foreseeable future. Fans of the show have known for some time that Mills would be working on the show in some capacity.
But no one knew that Heather would once again be a regular part of the show or that she would be played by Mills moving forward.
The last time that viewers saw Heather on the show was in 2016 when she was sent to D’Archam Asylum. At that point it was unclear whether Heather had been written out of the show completely.
However, her reappearance in this new episode in the hospital, confirms that the show has big plans for her character moving forward.
With all of the accolades and fans that Robin Mattson managed to accumulate in the many years that she portrayed Heather, Alley Mills will have big shoes to fill.
In many ways, the role was likely recast so that Mills could bring a new energy to the role, and fans have reacted positively to this shocking change so far.
Why Alley will have big shoes to fill when playing Heather on GH
Many fans are excited to know that crazy and evil Heather will be returning to the show, simply because of the level of drama that her character brings to any relationship that she is involved in.
However, even though such a strong character is fun to watch, it can be difficult for actors to push themselves to embody such a well-known and over-the-top role.
To add to this, the previous actress who portrayed this role, Robin Mattson played it so well that she won three Soapy Awards as Best Villainess and earned a nomination for a Daytime Emmy Award.
This means that Alley Mills will have to balance playing an established and recognisable character, with her own artistic interpretation in order to make her role a success in the long term.
How have fans of the show reacted to Alley playing Heather?
For the most part, viewers of the show have reacted positively to the revelation of Alley Mills’ portrayal of Heather.
Mills has had some experience with playing complicated and villainous characters in The Bold and the Beautiful where she portrayed Pam who went off of her meds for a while.
In her first scenes as Heather on General Hospital, Mills has managed to go completely psychotic and embody all of the traits that people loved about Robin’s portrayal, while still giving the character her own, unique spin.
What does the future hold for Heather on General Hospital?
Since the creators of General Hospital chose to introduce Heather by scaring Olivia in the hospital, it is clear that these characters’ futures will be closely intertwined in future plotlines on the show.
Heather returning to the show may also give some clarity to whether she is in fact Esme’s mom and have a lasting impact on Esme and Ryan’s relationship.