7 Guest performances in daily soaps that made your day

Over the years, daily soaps have provided a platform for numerous actors to kickstart their careers in the Hollywood industry. Not only that, many popular celebrities also graced our screens with their presence in these daily soaps.

In these guest-starring roles, these actors and actresses’ performances are sure to catch your eye as they add layers to the already dramatic storylines of the daily soaps. Whether they play a villainous role and create trouble in the other characters’ lives, are a family member of the main characters, or are just a new and fun character introduced for a couple of episodes.

In this article, we have listed 7 such entertaining and memorable guest performances that left an indelible mark.

Disclaimer: This article is based on the writer’s opinion. Reader discretion is advised.

7 Guest performances in daily soaps that made your day

7) James Franco (General Hospital)

"Hey Joe" - Red Carpet - The 19th Rome Film Festival - Source: Getty

To prepare for a movie role, James Franco joined General Hospital in 2009 with a role specifically created for him named Franco Baldwin. He is obsessed with hitman Jason Morgan and wants to depict his crimes insanely and artistically.

He approaches Morgan with a deal in which Jason will murder people and Franco will turn those murders into art. After Morgan rejects the offer, Franco begins to plot revenge on him, also hurting his family in the process. Although, James Franco played the role until 2012, it had been a recurring role up until 2021 and was played by Roger Howarth.

6) Sheryl Underwood (The Bold and the Beautiful)

48th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards - Source: Getty

The host of popular daytime talk show The Talk, Sheryl Underwood, impressed many with her guest-starring appearance in The Bold and the Beautiful. She played the character of Emmy, Bill Spencer’s executive assistant.

Underwood’s character Emmy was an entertaining and flirtatious character who is brought by Bill to know if his son, Wyatt’s marriage to Steffy was valid or not. Her conversations with her boss, Dollar Bill were the highlights whenever she appeared in the episodes, making her one of the most entertaining guest stars across daily soaps.

5) Susan Lucci (General Hospital)

Joy Behar, Susan Lucci, Sherri Shepherd, and Judy Gold In Conversation: My First Ex-Husband - Source: Getty

Although not a guest performance in the traditional sense, Susan Lucci’s popular daily soap character, Erica Kane from All My Children, appeared with Sonny Corinthos of General Hospital in a crossover episode.

As she was preparing for her speech in the elevator for being honored as Women of the Year, Maurice Benard’s Sonny stops her in the elevator and asks ehr to become an alibi, which she refuses as it was a big night for her and she did not want to miss it. The pairing was recommended by fans of the shows, which is still one of the most talked-about moments from the shows.

4) Dick Van Dyke (Days of Our Lives)

Dick Van Dyke, the latest Daytime Emmy winner in the guest performance category, plays Timothy Robicheaux, an amnesic war veteran searching for his son in Days of Our Lives. With his recent win, Dyke created history as the oldest actor receiving the honor at 96 years of age.

In one of the popular daily soaps, Van Dyke is helped the main characters, such as Marlena, Patch, and also John Black, who is later revealed to be Dyke’s character Timothy’s long-lost son. Dyke's performance as an old father looking for his son was heartfelt and touching which was lauded.

3) Ray Wise (The Young and the Restless)

One of the greatest enemies of Victor Newman, Ray Wise’s Ian Ward is one of the most beloved characters from daily soaps. Introduced as a mysterious cult leader, his animosity began with Victor due to Nikki, who was former member of his cult.

He sporadically appears in The Young and the Restless to create new problems in Victor’s life, including plotting and scheming with Victor’s son Adam, to bring the man down.

2) Elizabeth Taylor (General Hospital)

Who would of thought that a famous actress from Hollywoods classics would be a part of one of the popular daily soaps, General Hospital. Apparantly Franco wasn’t the only actor who approached first to be a part of the daily soap, Elizabeth Taylor, the famous actor of classical Hollywood cinema also had a role created for her.

She portrayed the role of Helena Cassadine, Mikkos Cassadine’s widow. After Mikkos’s death, which she blamed Luke and Laura for, Helena crashed their wedding and cursed the first supercouple, which still hasn’t died down as the couple has always been in the midst of some trouble.

1) Betty White (The Bold and the Beautiful)

Betty White in The Bold and the Beautiful | Image via Bell-Phillip Television Productions Inc.

For a long time, daily soaps have been a place where legendary actors have appeared and surprised fans with their performances in the beloved shows. Another such surprising performance was Betty White’s guest appearance as Pam and Stephanie’s mother, Ann Douglas.

As an actress of such a stature, White didn’t disappoint her fans as she in just a couple of recurring appearances, completely showed a character arc, blended with different emotions and growth. Initially introduced when Stephanie goes to confront her mother for the abuse that she let Stephanie go through, she showed us the nasty side of Ann by stubbornly defending and accusing her own daughter for the cause of all teh problems in her life.

But that’s not all, she later visits and apologises to Stephanie for all that she has been through, and till her death, she healed her relationship with both of her daughters.