Nelle Benson | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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General Hospital character | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Portrayed by |
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Duration |
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First appearance | August 8, 2016 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Last appearance | September 6, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Classification | Former; guest | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Created by | Shelly Altman and Jean Passanante | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Introduced by | Frank Valentini | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nelle Benson is a fictional character from General Hospital , an American soap opera on the ABC network. [3] [4] Created by Shelly Altman and Jean Passanante, and introduced by executive producer Frank Valentini, Nelle is portrayed by actress Chloe Lanier, who made her first appearance on August 8, 2016.
General Hospital was planning to cast another actress to portray the role of Nelle Hayes, as Lanier was involved with another series, Kingdom at that time, but Laura Wright and Frank Valentini were adamant that Lanier was right for the role, so the storyline was put on hold until the actress became available. [5] Lanier revealed to Soap Opera Digest that "Frank Valentini had called her personally and convinced her to do it. [6] Which she's very happy that he did, because they were able to work out a deal, so she could do other projects on her time off which she's thankful for." On July 12, 2016, Soaps In Depth officially announced that actress Lanier, who previously portrayed the role of the Patricia Spencer for the 52nd anniversary, would be returning to the serial in the newly created role of Nelle. [7] [8] The information about her character was a mystery, as the serial stayed tight-lipped about the character and her connection to Port Charles. [9] About Nelle's future, Lanier says "It will definitely take more than easy facts & logic to shift the dynamic, because Nelle grew up in a cult, being brainwashed by her father from an early age." [10] In June 2018, it was announced that Lanier had opted to not renew her deal with the serial, and would exit the role. [11] Lanier departed on August 7, 2018. [12] Lanier briefly reprised the role for a "short-term stint," from October 12 to 15, 2018. [13] [14] [15] On November 1, 2018, it was reported that Lanier will be making more appearances on the show. [16] Lanier appeared on November 8, 2018. [17] She also made an appearance on December 26, 2018. In May of the following year, Soaps.com announced that Lanier would reprise the role, beginning June 13. [18] Willa Rose portrayed a young Nelle in flashback scenes for the April 8, 2020, episode. [19] Lanier later exited the role and last appeared on September 1, 2020. [20] [21] Lanier then made a brief reappearance on September 6, 2022. [22]
A casting call was released for a General Hospital female character in her early 20s who is described as being "charismatic, dynamic and fiery." Any ethnicity actress was asked to audition for the role. [23] According to Lanier, "As much as her character mostly has it out for Carly, Nelle has a good heart, and isn't entirely vicious and evil." [24]
Nelle was introduced as a school teacher whose kidney was sold on the black market in order to save her niece, Josslyn's life. There were speculations that she would be related to Pat Spencer since she previously played the younger version of her, but in March 2017, it was revealed that she is the daughter of Frank Benson and the adopted half-sister of Carly Corinthos. [25] [26]
Janelle Benson, who goes by Nelle, arrives in Port Charles in August 2016 looking for Carly Corinthos (Wright). She meets her at the Corinthos' house, Greystone Manor, during the birthday party of Bobbie Spencer (Jacklyn Zeman), and informs her about being her daughter, Josslyn's (Eden McCoy) kidney donor. When Carly asks for proof, she becomes upset and tells them she's not here for money. Sonny and Jax don't believe her, and inform her about Carly being conned for money before. Nelle reacts badly and leaves. Michael goes after her and convinces her to stay, she meets Joss when she approaches her, and they briefly bond after Nelle assists her with an app. After Joss leaves, Michael and Nelle head back to Corinthos house, agreeing to go to the hospital for the tests and is confirmed to be the donor. Joss learns the truth about Nelle being the one who saved her life and thanks her with a hug. Carly and Joss ask her to stay in Port Charles so they can get to know her. She starts working for Carly as her stepdaughter, Avery Corinthos' nanny, after the previous nanny gets fired for stealing Carly's earrings. Nelle loses her job after Bobbie offers to look after Avery. So Carly offers her a job of a personal assistant at the Metro Court Hotel which she accepts. In November 2016, she drugs Sonny and leads him to believe he had sex with her, as part of her revenge plot against Carly. Nelle struggles with her guilt, however, but continues to conspire against Carly at Sonny's expense.
In early 2017, Michael convinces Nelle to bury the hatred and focus on her future; she listens to him, and decides to stop scheming so she and Michael can be together and she can finally be happy. She deletes the recording after Michael leaves, but when she goes to Carly's office to destroy the package that contained the recording, Bobbie confronts her about her nasty doings. She goes to see Michael so she can tell him the truth, but they got interrupted, so when they go to her apartment for privacy they find his parents there who expose Nelle. When Michael asks for the truth, Nelle admits everything, but blames Carly for it. She reveals being Frank Benson's daughter, and how Carly called her father for her kidney when her daughter got sick when she never cared about them. Carly denies it and says she thought it was Jake Webber's kidney which Nelle refuses to believe. Sonny and Michael try to explain to Nelle that her own father screwed her over and not Carly, but she doesn't listen to them. After Carly and Sonny leave, Michael stays back and gives Nelle an ear full before leaving.
Nelle starts packing her things, so she can move out from the apartment given to her by Carly. That's when Joss shows up with the concert tickets, but Nelle blows her off and goes for a drink at The Floating Rib where she runs into Michael who tells her he will never forgive her for hurting his parents. Jax then meets her somewhere, and Nelle learns through him that her father used her after he shows her proof and she realizes everything. She tries to make things right by confessing to Sonny that they didn't sleep together, and later on confesses to Carly as well, but to no avail. After hearing what she has to say, Carly kicks her out of her house. Since she no longer had a job, Nina Reeves (Michelle Stafford) hires her as a full-time nanny for Charlotte Cassadine (Scarlett Fernandez).
When Jasper gets arrested for buying Nelle's kidney illegally, she goes to the station and makes a statement about not wanting to press charges, so the charges get dropped for which Jasper thanks her. When Jasper leaves, Carly thanks Nelle, but then asks her to stay away from her family especially Michael. She asks Carly "when will it ever be enough for you to forgive me?" To which Carly replies it doesn't change what she did and she won't forgive her. Afterwards, Michael arrives at the station and misjudges Nelle, offering her a compensation if she doesn't press charges, oblivious that she saved Jax. When he learns the truth, he meets her at the docks while she's waiting for a boat to Wyndemere and apologizes to her. Nina presses her into spying on her husband, Valentin who she suspects is keeping secrets from her.
In June 2017, Nina hires Nelle to work as her executive assistant at Crimson; despite this, Nelle is later fired by Nina. When Michaels breaks up with Nelle, she admits she is pregnant with his baby. Nelle is later hired by Ava Jerome (Maura West) to work at the Jerome Gallery. Angered by her own belief that it was Carly's doing that led to her split from Michael, Nelle begins to manipulate Carly, in the hopes of making her lose her mind, by making anonymous calls near the site where Morgan Corinthos (Bryan Craig) died.
During her baby shower, Nelle fell down a flight of stairs at the Quartermaine Mansion after getting into an argument with Carly, similar to the situation that happened to Carly years ago, when she lost her child on the same stairs.
In late 2018, she was visited by Charlotte's soon-to-be great-aunt Liesl Obrecht (Kathleen Gati) in prison after Nelle's male counterpart Peter August (Wes Ramsey) became the new owner of The Invader tabloid. In late 2019, when Brad visited her in Pentonville prison, she requested him to let her be a part of her son's life once she's out of prison after she met convicted serial killer Ryan Chamberlain (Jon Lindstrom). The following year, Nelle is given an early release from Pentonville, and reveals herself as the widow of David Henry "Shiloh" Archer, who bore a striking resemblance to the late Nathan West (Ryan Paevey). With her status as Shiloh's widow, she uses her proxy to sell her shares of ELQ to Valentin Cassadine (James Patrick Stuart) and begins to assert herself as Wiley's mother, much to the dismay and objection of the residents of Port Charles. When she hears of Brad and Lucas' decision to leave Port Charles with Wiley, she attempts to kidnap him, however, she is stopped by Michael and Chase. It is hinted that Nelle is the long-lost daughter of Nina (Cynthia Watros), having possession of the baby rattle and half-heart necklace that Nina possesses, but has yet to be confirmed as of August 2020. In May 2020, Nelle marries Julian Jerome (William deVry). In August, after kidnapping Wiley and going on the run, Michael tracked them down to a cabin, but Nelle took off into the woods. Following a showdown with Carly, Nelle fell off a cliff. Carly tried to save her, but it was too late.
In 2022, on the second death anniversary of her death, Nelle appeared in Nina and Willow's dreams.
In 2023, Charlie Mason from Soaps She Knows placed Nelle at #40 on his ranked list of General Hospital’s 40+ Greatest Characters of All Time, commenting "“Ugh,” we can just hear you saying. “Why is she on this list?” Frankly, it's because the mere mention of the supervixen's name can make you say, “Ugh.” Troublemakers who leave that lasting an impression are hard to come by — and harder to forget!" [27]
General Hospital is an American daytime television soap opera. It is listed in Guinness World Records as the longest-running American soap opera in production, and the second in American history after Guiding Light. Concurrently, it is the world's third longest-running scripted drama series in production after British serials The Archers and Coronation Street, as well as the world's second-longest-running televised soap opera still in production. General Hospital premiered on the ABC television network on April 1, 1963. General Hospital is the longest-running serial produced in Hollywood, and the longest-running entertainment program in ABC television history. It holds the record for most Daytime Emmy Awards for Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series, with 14 wins.
Carly Corinthos is a fictional character from General Hospital, a soap opera on the ABC network, portrayed by Laura Wright from 2005. A collaborative effort between the writers, Carly – originally played by Sarah Joy Brown from 1996 to 2001 — was introduced under executive producer Wendy Riche. A "love to hate" character who brings excitement to storylines because of her devious ways, Carly is the illegitimate daughter of former bad girl turned heroine, Bobbie Spencer.
Michael Corinthos is a fictional character on General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. Introduced in 1997, the role was portrayed by several child actors—most notably Dylan Cash when the character was rapidly aged in 2002. In 2009, the character was aged again when Drew Garrett stepped into the role. Garrett was replaced by Chad Duell after one year with the series. Robert Adamson pinch-hit for Duell in 2022 and 2024 when the actor was unavailable for various reasons.
Morgan Corinthos is a fictional character from the original ABC Daytime soap opera, General Hospital, last portrayed by Bryan Craig. Morgan is the first biological child of Sonny and Carly Corinthos.
Jasper "Jax" Jacks is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. He has been portrayed mainly by actor Ingo Rademacher since 1996. The role was temporarily played by Gideon Emery during Rademacher's absence from the show in January 2008. The character gained popularity due to a love triangle storyline involving him and supercouple Sonny Corinthos and Brenda Barrett. When Brenda left the show, the love triangle was continued with Sonny and Carly Benson.
Kate Howard is a fictional character from the ABC Daytime soap opera General Hospital. The character was originated by actress Megan Ward, who portrayed the role from May 2007 to October 2010. In September 2011, the role was re-introduced with actress Kelly Sullivan. Connie is known for having two distinct alternate personalities – Connie, who later changed her name to Kate Howard, who established her career and who the character was initially introduced as, and an alternate personality also named Connie, who was based on her life back in Bensonhurst. Sullivan departed the role in August 2013, when the character was killed off, but made a one-off appearance in October 2014. Ward briefly returned for one episode in January 2018, and for another in December 2020.
The Spencer family is a fictional family on the American soap opera General Hospital. The family was created by Douglas Marland and first introduced in 1977 when Bobbie Spencer arrived in Port Charles. Bobbie's brother, Luke debuted in 1978. Supercouple Luke and Laura Spencer are part of this family, known for their romance and many adventures. The Spencer family is characterized as an adventurous bunch, but many in the family have struggled with various types of substance abuse. They are known for their longstanding feud with the Cassadine family. The family is currently represented by: Laura, Carly, Lucas, Michael, Josslyn, Cameron, Jake, Aiden, Rocco, Charlotte, Wiley, Donna, and Amelia. The Spencers are the owners of the Haunted Star yacht, which is a staple establishment in the Port Charles community.
Julian Jerome is a fictional character from the original ABC Daytime drama General Hospital. Created by Ann Marcus and Norma Monty, the role was originally portrayed by Jason Culp from 1988 to 1990. William deVry took over the role upon the character's re-introduction in 2013 before exiting in 2020.
Dante Falconeri is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network, played by Dominic Zamprogna. Zamprogna made his debut on June 22, 2009. In 2018, Zamprogna announced his decision to leave the role, and departed on June 28, 2018; he later returned for a one-off episode on November 12, 2018. In 2019, he again reprised the role from March 15 to March 29. The following year, he returned in a full-time capacity.
Robin Scorpio is a fictional character from the ABC Daytime soap opera General Hospital and its primetime SOAPnet spin-off General Hospital: Night Shift, originated and portrayed by Kimberly McCullough on and off for over 30 years since 1985. The character came to mainstream attention during a 1990s story arc where her boyfriend Stone Cates dies from AIDS and Robin is diagnosed as HIV-positive. Robin is also famous in the soap community for having been one of the few long-term soap characters to age in real time, not SORASed like most other child actors.
Britt Westbourne is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network, portrayed by Kelly Thiebaud. She was introduced by executive producer Frank Valentini on September 19, 2012, as the manipulative love interest for Patrick Drake. In 2014, Thiebaud exited the role, citing her desire to seek work in both film and primetime television. She reprised the role on several occasions, between 2015 and 2018, for limited-run guest appearances. In March 2020, Thiebaud returned for another guest stint; by September of the same year, she returned to the role once more.
The Jerome family is a fictional family from the original ABC Daytime drama General Hospital. The family was first introduced in January 1987. As one of the most powerful families in organized crime, the Jeromes rose to popularity due to their longstanding feud with antihero Duke Lavery and his heroine wife, Anna Devane. However, by the spring of 1990, all of the major family members had been (presumably) killed off of the series. In 2013, the family was revived as part of an ongoing storyline.
Ava Jerome is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. The role is portrayed by three-time Daytime Emmy Award winner Maura West, who made her first appearance on May 8, 2013.
Kiki Jerome is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. The role was originated by Kristen Alderson in 2013 when Kiki was introduced as the troublesome girlfriend of Morgan Corinthos having gotten him involved in a dangerous gambling ring. Alderson had previously appeared in the series as Starr Manning, a role she originated on One Life to Live. The character was written into the series as the illegitimate daughter of Franco in 2009. Upon her introduction, Kiki's mother Ava Jerome reveals that she is the biological daughter of Dr. Silas Clay. In 2015, Alderson vacated the role and was replaced by Hayley Erin, who exited the role in late 2018. Erin returned for a one-episode guest appearance in 2019.
Madeline Reeves is a fictional character on the long-running ABC daytime soap opera General Hospital, portrayed by Donna Mills, who made her appearance on March 14, 2014. The casting was announced in January 2014. Madeline was introduced as the estranged mother-in-law of Dr. Silas Clay and mother of Silas' comatose wife Nina Reeves and, biological aunt of Nathan West — whom she raised as her own. Madeline is also revealed to be the estranged sister of established character Dr. Liesl Obrecht having remade herself. Mills wrapped her initial stint in May 2014. Though the character was supposed to be short-term, Mills reprised the role of Madeline from October 2014 to January 2015. The character once again resurfaced in May 2015. Her returns have centered on Madeline's attempts to get back in her son's good graces and get her hands on the family fortune.
Chloe Lanier is an American actress. She is best known for her role on the ABC soap opera General Hospital as the villainous Nelle Benson. For her portrayal, Lanier was nominated for three consecutive Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series, winning in 2018.
Peter August is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network, portrayed by Wes Ramsey. Peter is introduced as a media publisher in 2017, and is soon revealed to be the previously unknown son of Cesar Faison and Alex Marick. However, he was believed to be the son of Anna Devane, Alex's twin sister.
Trina Robinson is a fictional character from General Hospital, an American soap opera on the ABC network. The role was originated played by Tiana Le from 2017 to 2018. Nearly a year later on February 20, 2019, Sydney Mikayla took over the role. Later that year, Mikayla began appearing as a series regular. She vacated the role in March 2022; Tabyana Ali replaced her later that month.