Why are there rumors about Roger Howarth coming back to General Hospital? Explained

Actor Roger Howarth was last seen on General Hospital in November 2023 when some unrecognized assailant shot his character Austin Gatlin-Holt. The actor has played three different roles in the soap over a period of almost a decade.

He joined GH in 2012, playing his One Life to Live character, the villainous Todd Manning. After playing Manning for a year, Howarth stepped into the role of the recast Franco Baldwin. He played Franco from 2013 to 2021. After Franco's exit from the storyline, Howarth was cast as Austin, a role he played between 2021 and 2023.

General Hospital fans have wanted a return for the actor to the soap. Recent rumors about the actor's return stem from an upcoming live event. Howarth and his GH co-star, Michael Easton, are slated for a live event on Zoom on February 23, 2025, at 7 pm.

The event was announced in December 2024, leading to speculations about the actor's return to the soap. This, along with the recent name-dropping of one of Howarth's characters, Austin, on the show, sparked hope among fans.

While Howarth had previously expressed interest in working in soaps if offered the opportunity, the GH production has not yet announced whether the actor will be included in any role in the storyline.

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A quick look at Roger Howarth's characters on General Hospital

As mentioned earlier, Roger Howarth joined General Hospital in 2012, playing Todd Manning, a character he played on One Life to Live. In One Life to Live, he portrayed Todd from 1992 to 2013 and earned seven award nominations for his portrayal of the villain.

After Todd's story arc took him away from Port Charles, Howarth was recast as Franco Baldwin, a character reprised by James Franco till 2012. Howarth portrayed the complicated character of Franco Baldwin till 2021. During his reprisal of the character, Howarth presented Franco's relationship tussle with Jason Morgan, while trying to reconnect with daughter Kiki Jerome.

Franco's storyline included his stabbing his mother, Heather, to save Carly Spencer and proposing to her despite knowing she was getting closer to Sonny Corinthos.

He also helped Nina Reeves escape after kidnapping Ava's baby, saved her from Heather and overdosed on LSD to stay with Nina. However, in 2021, Peter August shot Franco dead.

In May 2021, Howarth was introduced as Austin Gatlin-Holt, a doctor who helped Maxie Jones with the birth of Bailey. He eventually got to know the PCPD cops and the WSB officers and tried to help them in their various investigations, despite having memory issues.

However, with his memories restored, he took over the CEO position of ELQ from Valentin. Later, his connections with Cyrus Renault were revealed, which made Ava Jerome furious. At the time, she was dating him, and he knew her kidnapper but didn't inform her.

In November 2023, Roger Howarth's Austin discussed his boss and benefactor Cyrus with Dante Falconeri. He wanted to help PCPD nab the master criminal. However, before he could give out the mobster's whereabouts, Austin was shot in the chest leading to his death.

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Current speculations about Howarth's return to General Hospital

Austin's murder was never investigated on General Hospital. While the story arcs connected to him moved ahead, it was an easy guess that Austin had become a danger to Cyrus and the latter benefitted from his death. However, neither PCPD nor the WSB ever conducted a formal investigation into his death or nabbed his killer.

On the General Hospital episode that aired on Thursday, February 6, 2025, Jacks Brennan and Josslyn were found discussing Cyrus Renault's hideout with one of the potential areas being Austin's house. This name-dropping has raised hopes for many fans about Austin's murder getting closure.

Moreover, as mentioned before, Roger Howarth and Michael Easton, who have been friends for a long time, will appear in a special live event on Sunday, February 23.

The 75-minute event will offer fans the opportunity to catch the show, listen to the actors speaking, and interact with them. This started a set of rumors on social media about the actors' returns to the soap.

While Austin is dead on General Hospital and may not return to the soap's plot, it remains to be seen whether Howarth returns in another role. Stay tuned to ABC to catch the upcoming drama every weekday.