Disney/Ricky Middlesworth; Paul Drinkwater/NBC
Jack Of All Trades: Charles Mesure’s (l.) run as Brennan has come to an end, with Chris McKenna tapped to replace him.
In arguably the biggest casting shakeup of the soap year thus far, Charles Mesure, who made his General Hospital debut in the role of Jack Brennan on December 1, 2023, has left the show of his own accord. A GH spokesperson confirmed the news to Soap Opera Digest in a statement, saying, “Charles Mesure opted to exit the role of Brennan. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.”
Role Reversal
Mesure’s last air date was Thursday, January 30 — and beginning on Tuesday, February 4, the role of Brennan will be played by soap vet Chris McKenna (ex-Joey Buchanan, One Life to Live; ex-Mark Harding, Young and Restless; ex-Dr. Hayden, Bold and Beautiful). Said the GH rep in a statement, “General Hospital looks forward to continuing Brennan’s exciting storyline with Chris McKenna in the role.”
In an interview with Digest last year, Mesure admitted that he had gone into his audition for GH with some trepidation. “I’ll be honest about it, I thought, ‘I’m an old dog. I’m not sure if I can learn any new tricks! I’m not sure if I can adapt to the huge amount of dialogue that these fantastic actors on shows like General Hospital can learn. I’m not sure if I can suddenly be a leading man again at the age of 53!’ ” He explained, “For 28 years, I came from a single camera film background where you can only do eight, nine, 10 pages a day, [while at GH] it’s no secret that they do 10 times that every day!”
His mind was changed, he shared, after meeting GH’s casting director, Mark Teschner, and reading opposite Laura Wright (Carly), who he described as “so superb when I read with her and such a gracious host in the way that she ran that chemistry read. I thought, ‘Oh, I think I really want to work with her!’ ”
At the time of his conversation with Digest, Mesure enthused, “The truth is, I’ve had an absolute ball. I’m really surprised at how much fun this has been because I was so apprehensive about the workload, I was apprehensive about the pressure and the schedule and so forth, but I’ve had an absolute ball every single day I’ve been there.”
Disney/Christine Bartolucci
Crush Groove: Carly (Laura Wright) and Brennan’s relationship has blossomed in recent weeks.
Mesure’s successor as Brennan, Chris McKenna, began his daytime career at the age of 12, when he was cast on One Life to Live in the role of Joey Buchanan, son of Clint and Viki Buchanan, which he played from 1990-93. As Joey, McKenna was part of the landmark storyline of teen Billy Douglas’s (Ryan Phillippe) coming out. “It was a big deal and remember that fondly,” he told Digest in 2014. In 1993, he earned a Soap Opera Digest Award nomination for Outstanding Child Actor for his portrayal of Joey.
McKenna returned to soaps in 2014 to play murderous detective Mark Harding on Y&R. He beamed to Digest at the time, “It’s been so great to revisit those daytime roots. I was kind of thrown into the fire at Y&R and it could’ve been a potentially nerve-wracking experience for me, but it turned out to be a great experience.” After Harding was killed off in 2015, McKenna briefly popped up on B&B the following year as a therapist who treated Heather Tom’s Katie.
Over the course of his career, McKennas also amassed a wide array of prime-time credits, appearing on shows such as That ’70s Show, Criminal Minds, Chicago Fire, NCIS, NCIS: New Orleans and NCIS: Los Angeles. Between 2011 and 2013, the actor had a seven-episode recurring run on 90210, the reboot of Beverly Hills 90210, in the role of Patrick Westhill.
ABC
Way Back When: McKenna on the OLTL set, where he played Joey opposite Erin Torpey as Jessica and Robert S. Woods as Bo.
After four years of bringing the character of Dr. Austin Brennan to life on General Hospital, Charles Mesure has announced his departure from the popular soap opera. Mesure’s portrayal of the charming and enigmatic doctor has garnered him a dedicated fan following, but the actor has decided to pursue other opportunities.
In light of Mesure’s exit, General Hospital has announced that the role of Dr. Austin Brennan will be recast with actor Chris McKenna. McKenna is no stranger to soap operas, having previously appeared on The Young and the Restless and One Life to Live. Fans can expect McKenna to bring his own unique spin to the character of Brennan, as he navigates the drama and intrigue of Port Charles.
Stay tuned to General Hospital to see how the character of Dr. Austin Brennan evolves with Chris McKenna at the helm. Don’t miss out on the exciting new developments and twists that are sure to come with this casting shakeup!
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