If you tuned into General Hospital on Monday, December 18, you might have noticed something a little different about Josslyn Jacks; well, there is a good reason for that.
That’s because Courtney Fulk has temporarily replaced Eden McCoy in the role of Josslyn. No official reason for the recasting has been given, but fans have speculated it’s due to personal matters.
Last month, McCoy shared that her mother had passed away, so it’s likely she took time off for that reason. Given the soap’s busy schedule, which shoots about a month in advance, it makes sense why McCoy would be absent from the December episodes.
The replacement role marks Fulk’s daytime debut; her previous credits include the television movies Killer Cheer Mom and Student Seduction. She is also set to star as Young Sam in the upcoming horror film Devil’s Ride, which is currently in pre-production.
Josslyn Jacks is the daughter of Carly (Laura Wright) and Jasper “Jax” Jacks (Ingo Rademacher), who was born on November 3, 2009, while her mother was held hostage by Claudia Zacchara (Sarah Brown). McCoy first portrayed Josslyn in 2015 and has gone on to appear in almost 700 episodes.
McCoy has earned praise for her performance, including a win for Outstanding Younger Performer at last week’s Daytime Emmy Awards; the actress was on hand to collect her trophy. General Hospital also picked up the Daytime Emmy for Oustanding Drama Series.
Eden McCoy; ABC
“This is for and because of my mother,” McCoy said in her speech. “It’s not lost on me what an absolute privilege it is to be able to do something not only I like to do but love to do for a living, and I love what I do. It’s really easy to be grateful on nights like this, but I am grateful every day.”
So far, it seems like fans have been accepting of Fulk temporarily taking over the role.
“She did a good job stepping in, and Eden, Mama was smiling down at the Emmys,” wrote one viewer on X.
“I liked her, let the writers make her Jax & Brenda’s long lost daughter! They’re good at stuff like that,” said another.
“Courtney did a fantastic job and I look forward to seeing more of her,” added another. “My heart is broken for @RealEdenMccoy. We all love you and want you to take all the time you need to recover from this loss. I lost my mom 30 years ago and it still hurts. It’s different, but it’s there.”
“Hope Eden takes all the time she needs,” said another fan. “Healing from the loss of a parent is an ongoing process.”
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