More than a decade since soap opera fans last saw her in the iconic role of Victoria Lord Buchanan on “One Life to Live,” legendary actress Erika Slezak is set to make a grand return to the world of daytime television when she joins the cast of “General Hospital” later this year, though who she’ll be playing on the series has not been revealed.
“Erika has just informed me she has signed a short-term contract with ABC’s ‘General Hospital,’” read a statement released by Slezak’s official fan club on Thursday. “At this time, Erika does not know which character she will be playing or when her scenes will air, but is excited to be working again with Executive Producer Frank Valentini and the cast of GH!”
In a message later posted on X (formerly Twitter), Valentini confirmed Slezak’s casting, saying, “I am thrilled to confirm that my dear friend and former ‘One Life to Live’ colleague, Erika Slezak, will appear on @GeneralHospital this Fall. Stay tuned as we prepare to introduce another daytime legend to Port Charles.”
In the years since “One Life to Live” went off the air in January 2012, Slezak went on to reprise her role from the show for the short-lived 2013 online revival that was produced by Prospect Park Networks, which at the time had landed the exclusive licensing rights to the show’s characters. The company went on to sue ABC, accusing the network of looking to create a “mega soap” scheme following the network’s use of key “One Life to Live” characters on “General Hospital.”
Prospect Park Networks had been seeking more than $95 million in damages. By December 2012, the lawsuit had been dismissed, with the rights to both the “One Life to Live” brand and characters returning to ABC, along with the rights to the “All My Children” brand and characters.
Playing Viki on “One Life to Live” for more than 40 years, Slezak won six Daytime Emmy Awards, each in the category of Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, earning the most wins of any individual actress.
By 2018, Slezak would make her first appearance after the dual cancellations of “One Life to Live,” playing the role of Helen in an episode of “The Resident.” She followed that up with an appearance in the May 3, 2019 episode of “Blue Bloods, playing the role of Donna Duvall. She again reprised the role in the January 6, 2023 episode
In 2021, Slezak made her Hallmark Channel original movie debut, appearing alongside soap alums Lyndsy Fonseca (“The Young and the Restless”) and Chandler Massey (“Days of our Lives”) in “Next Stop, Christmas.” Lea Thompson (“Back to the Future”) and Christopher Lloyd (“Back to the Future”) also starred in the holiday movie.
Outside of acting, Slezak and her husband, Brian Davies, sadly lost their daughter, Amanda Elizabeth Davies, in January 2024.
