General Hospital fans recently saw the return of a character to the soap who hadn’t been seen in months. Actor James Patrick Stuart, who plays Valentin Cassadine on the soap, made a brief appearance during a recent cliffhanger episode. Notably, this comes out as a lot of characters are leaving, or are set to leave, the soap.

James Patrick Stuart First Joined General Hospital In 2016

Stuart is notably the son of David Stuart Chadwick, the “Chad” of the British pop group Chad & Jeremy. In 1989, he notably was cast as Will Cortlandt on All My Children. Having taken on the role from Lonnie Quinn, he remained in the role until 1992.

Stuart took on the role of the villainous Valentin Cassadine on General Hospital in 2016. In addition, he has notably appeared in the Disney Channel sitcom, The Villains of Valley View, as Kraniac, the patriarch of a family of villains.

As noted by Soap Opera Digest, Stuart was last seen on General Hospital as Valentin on July 17, 2024. However, he has since made a return to the soap on its December 27 episode.

Valentin previously left Port Charles with his daughter, Cassadine, to avoid taking the fall for Pikeman’s illegal activities. However, Charlotte’s mother has since been set of finding her daughter, following her waking up from a four-year coma.

The mother and daughter briefly reunited on the soap. However, their meeting was interrupted when Charlotte saw her father peer at them through a window.

Stuart Was Previously Balancing His Soap Work With A Disney Channel Sitcom

As the publication noted, Stuart’s role on the soap was originally meant to be short-term but proved popular enough for the character to be given a larger role. Stuart also earned Daytime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2020, 2021 and 2022.

Back in 2022, there was concern that Stuart getting a lead role on The Villains of Valley View would conflict with his work on General Hospital. However, at the time, Stuart shared his intention to balance both characters.

As the actor shared, “I took Frank [Valentini, executive producer] out to dinner and I told him, ‘I hope you realize that my heart is here. I love the work we do together, I love this family.’ [And] he said, ‘Well, we’ll make it work.’”

The sitcom has since been canceled by Disney after two seasons. Thanks to this, regardless of his earlier plans, Stuart will likely have more time for his General Hospital character.

Over the years, Valentin was paired off with a variety of characters. This has included Anna and Nina Reeves. With the character’s return, it is possible that the soap can explore these stories once again. The character’s return also comes out as various characters have left the soap, showcasing the changes that have been recently impacting Port Charles.

Did you see James Patrick Stuart’s return to General Hospital? Make sure you come back to TV Shows Ace for all the latest TV and celebrity news.