Just because a soap opera character is legendary doesn’t mean the actor behind the role is just as important. Take a look at The Bold and the Beautiful’s (B&B) Ridge Forrester, General Hospital’s (GH) Drew Cain, The Young and the Restless’ (Y&R) Billy Abbott and Days Of Our Lives’ (DOOL) EJ DiMera; they’re all fan-favorites, yet they’ve also survived being recasted in recent years! So let’s look at a special group of soap opera performers who are so entwined with their characters, they simply cannot be recast!
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12. John McCook as Eric Forrester (B&B)
John McCook is a flagship performer in every sense of the term; he’s part of the fabric of B&B, in no small part because he has portrayed Eric Forrester since the soap’s very first episode! Over the decades, Eric Forrester has explored just about every storyline possible – including a unique 2021 narrative whereby he allowed his wife to have an affair because he was unable to perform in the bedroom. John McCook took home a Daytime Emmy award for that performance, 35 years after his debut in the role. Good luck recasting that!
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