Charles Shaughnessy Almost Didn't Land His First Role On General Hospital

According to Soap Hub, Charles Shaughnessy was an avid fan of soap operas after uprooting his life to move to the United States. Therefore, it was a natural fit for him to be interested in a role on one of the major soaps on the air at the time. Coincidentally, "General Hospital" was the actor's favorite soap at the time, so the prospect of working with its top stars was highly appealing. He said, "I became a complete soap fan immediately after I came to America and was like totally into 'General Hospital,' [it] was all about Holly [Emma Samms] and Robert Scorpio [Tristan Rogers] and all that stuff as well as the 'One Life to Live' crowd." 

During his recent run on "GH," Shaughnessy worked closely with Samms, but his first attempt was quickly rejected despite a stellar audition. He stated, "I got an audition for 'General Hospital' to play Holly's cousin. I auditioned for it, I heard back from my agent that 'They loved your reading, but you're not quite the right look, they're going another way.'"

Shaughnessy believed himself to be the proper fit for the role and couldn't conceive a reason he wasn't selected. His instinct was to ask if there was a more cosmetic reason behind not being cast as Holly's cousin, and indeed, he was on to something.