Daytime Soap Opera
Actor Of The Week

Rick Hearst (Ric, General Hospital)

Ric schemes, he kidnaps, he’s done all kinds of bad, yet through decades of that he’s never fully fallen into cartoon territory and that’s thanks to Rick Hearst. Hearst has always brought depth to this character, shown Ric’s human every chance he gets, shown the emotions driving Ric’s actions, so he’s a villain yeah, but he’s played so skillfully that the door is always open for him to be more than that. This week Ric maneuvered his nephew out of a legal jam, he counseled his once rival brother on his love life, and in my favorite moment, when Alexis, his usually hated ex, pressed him on his sudden interest in his family, in what seemed to be a genuinely emotional confession, Ric admitted he’s been thinking about how his daughter Molly would be the only one who’d miss him when he’s gone, he wants people in his life to laugh with, and argue with, and to love just like Alexis has. Alexis of course found that kind of hard to swallow. And maybe she’s right, maybe Ric is playing some kind of long con here. Or maybe not. That’s what’s so great about Hearst, about the way he plays Ric, the writers could go in a million different directions here and no matter what, this actor will make it believable.