In a post shared on Instagram, “General Hospital” star Kirsten Storms (Maxie Jones) announced that she is moving to Tennessee with Harper, her daughter she shares with Brandon Barash (“Days of our Lives,” “General Hospital”), while also addressing her recent absence from Port Charles, those pesky online rumors and when fans can expect her back full-time as she takes an extended break from the daytime drama series.
“I’m very excited to be making Tennessee my home! I can’t wait to return to ‘GH,’ once Harper and I are settled in our new town. I plan on documenting as much of this new journey on my social media as I can,” said Storms in the post’s caption. “It’s always been a dream of mine to move to a place like this; it’s hard to believe it’s really happening.”
In an accompanying video, she said, “First. I meant to post this video a few weeks ago, and time just got away from me, but in March, I asked Frank Valentini, our amazing executive producer … I had a conversation with him about my reasons for wanting to move, and my desire to not leave the show.”
“Now, when you approach a job like this, they can always be like ‘forget it. We’re gonna let you out of your contract if you’re going to leave the state,’” Storms continued, noting the soap opera opted not to do that, “Which was kind of amazing because I also asked for some time off.”
Temporary Exit / Expected Return
On screen, last week viewers were shocked to see a different, yet familiar face in the role of Maxie Jones on the ABC soap, with Nicole Paggi temporarily filling in for Storms for at least three episodes, the second of which will air later this month, with Storms returning on screen in mid-August. However, it looks like Storms will be off-screen for an extended period thereafter.
“The week before last week. I had my final taping day for the year,” revealed Storms in her video. “It’s possible I will be back in December, maybe November. I promise you the storyline they have going on until my return to Port Charles is kind of incredible – you guys are going to freak out, actually – can’t wait to see the comments online about that.”
Special Thanks
Storms’ video continued with her thanking those behind the scenes at “General Hospital” and ABC, saying, “I really want to thank ‘GH,’ the ABC network executives, the writers for agreeing to let me take this time. I know Frank and the producers there know my reasons, and I am so grateful that they understand and are supportive.”
Rumor Has It…
Closing out her video message, Storms touched upon recent rumors that have been spreading online about her personal life, which up to now she had not publicly addressed. “Really quick about the online rumors, and I’ll get into some of this stuff at a later date,” Storms stared. “This is just me very long windedly explaining that I’m taking a break and moving to Tennessee. If you don’t read about it or watch a video on it from my page, take it with a grain of salt. People like to say a whole bunch of stuff.”
Watch Storms’ video message below.
