General Hospital has been dealt a blow as it has been confirmed that Eva LaRue's character, Natalia, will be leaving the hit soap opera. The character was seen mixing a combination of pills and alcohol, hinting at her fate – and Eva has confirmed that she will be exiting the role.
Speaking to Soap Opera Digest about the decision, she said: "People just weren’t buying it, because they just hated my character so much. I was so vilified that no matter what [the writers] did, it just wasn’t a solid enough rehabilitation that they were going to buy me with Sonny. And so when they finally let that idea go, I realised, ‘Okay, I’m probably not much longer for this world.'"
She added: "I had a blast at General Hospital. I loved being there and I had a lot of really great scenes and I loved everybody that I got to work with. It was just an awesome experience, and I was really glad that I got to stay longer than I was supposed to."
© Disney via Getty ImagesThe star was originally only supposed to have joined the show for two months back in February 2024, and remained much longer than she had initially intended. Elaborating on her character's downfall, she explained: "They tried to rehabilitate my character, and then all of a sudden I have these scenes where, because Natalia had lied about her ex-husband and broken his trust, Sonny was like, ‘We can’t be friends anymore.'
"And I thought, ‘Uh-oh, there we go,’ because that [relationship with Sonny] was kind of my character’s only lifeline."
Discussing the news, one person wrote: "I love Eva, I think she’s a fabulous actress. I think she should come back after things blow over for SONNY, they always do." Another person added: "I don’t like how actually actress Eva LaRue’s acting skills weren’t fully used. The General Hospital writers made her the most vulnerable and hated character. The writers missed an important opportunity. She's a great actress."
© Getty Images for Race to Erase MHowever, it is onwards and upwards for Eva, who has already taken to Instagram to share her next project. She wrote: "A huge thank you to #GeneralHospital for a lovely run! You can catch my new project, 'My Nightmare Stalker' documentary on Paramount+ airing in October."
Replying to the post, one person wrote: "Enjoyed having you on the screen again! Been a fan since your AMC days! Good luck with whatever you do next," while another added: "I’m so sad! I really thought you and Sonny would be the new couple!"
