John Oliver finally got his soap opera wish, confirmed roles on General Hospital and Days of our Lives, and gave Soap Hub an unexpected mention along the way.
John Oliver’s campaign to land a soap opera role has officially paid off. During the June 28 episode of Last Week Tonight, the Emmy-winning host confirmed he’ll appear on General Hospital this week and Days of our Lives in August. Along the way, he also gave Soap Hub a fun surprise shoutout that caught our attention.
Key Takeaways
- John Oliver confirmed upcoming appearances on General Hospital and Days of our Lives.
- The Last Week Tonight host mentioned Soap Hub during his on-air announcement.
- Oliver’s soap guest roles began with a challenge he made on his HBO series earlier this year.
John Oliver’s Soap Dream Finally Comes True
Back in March, Oliver openly admitted he was jealous of sports commentator Stephen A. Smith’s recurring role as Brick on General Hospital. During a segment on Last Week Tonight, he threw down a challenge to every network soap, saying he wanted a real character, a ridiculous name, and a storyline filled with classic soap drama.
It didn’t take long for daytime to answer.
Now, Oliver has revealed that he’ll debut on General Hospital beginning July 2 before appearing on Days of our Lives in August. While he stopped short of revealing exactly who he’s playing, he shared a first-look image from GH and joked about acting “really hard” while standing among armed men with dramatically darkened hair. He also showed a photo of himself on DAYS wearing a wig he likened to Elvis, and in a room with EJ (Dan Feuerriegel).
Soap Hub Got an Unexpected Mention
While looking back at how his soap opera dream became reality, Oliver displayed a montage of headlines chronicling the journey. Among them was a Soap Hub story from March titled “John Oliver Makes Passionate Plea For a ‘Juicy’ Soap Opera Role,” giving longtime readers a fun surprise during the segment.
For soap fans who have followed Oliver’s campaign to land a role, it felt like a full-circle moment. What started as a humorous plea on HBO has turned into guest appearances on two iconic daytime dramas.
From Joke to Reality
According to General Hospital Executive Producer Frank Valentini, the production team embraced Oliver’s challenge almost immediately after he publicly expressed interest.
Valentini praised Oliver for arriving prepared, professional, funny, and kind to everyone on set, adding that he’ll play a significant role in the upcoming storyline. Oliver echoed the enthusiasm, saying appearing on General Hospital was everything he hoped it would be and calling it an honor to become “a small stain on the history of this illustrious show.”
Days of our Lives also stepped up when Oliver made his plea. “When John Oliver said, ‘Call me soaps, I’m available and willing to travel. I want to be a part of that world,’ our world, we had to heed the call!” shared DAYS’ Executive Producer Ken Corday.
His GH episodes are scheduled to air July 2, July 3, and July 6, while his Days of our Lives appearances are slated for August 11, 12, and 14.
With mystery surrounding both characters, soap fans now have plenty of reasons to speculate about exactly who Oliver will be playing in Port Charles and Salem. Who do you think he’ll portray?
