Why do some Daytime Soap actors have better luck at being cast on primtime TV roles and/or movies than others?

[MissLlanviewPA]

Frankly, it's a miracle Dixie got Designing Women after she played Mr. Drummond's wife on Diff'rent Strokes. All in the love in the world for early 80's sitcoms and stuff, but that was a serious upgrade for her .

[Khan]

True. As popular as Dixie Carter might have been on EDGE, she wasn't as strongly identified with Brandy Henderson as KZ was with Reva.

But, on the OTHER hand, aside from Susan Lucci, Genie Francis and Tony Geary, is anyone who has spent the bulk of their career in soaps REALLY that well-known outside the genre? Moreover, unless CBS wanted younger, more upscale viewers for ES (which I doubt, given who ended up in the cast), I can't see how KZ would have been a liability for them. If anything, she might have been able to get GL fans at least to sample the show.

So, yeah, I'm not sure that justification for not hiring her works. I mean, even KZ herself has admitted she doesn't audition very well. Perhaps that was the REAL reason why CBS turned her down.

[Khan]

Well, it helped that Linda Bloodworth-Thomason had worked with Dixie (and with Delta Burke) years before on "Filthy Rich" and had written the role of Julia Sugarbaker expressly for her. (IIRC, her impetus for writing the DW pilot was to "put Dixie, Delta, Jean Smart and Annie Potts [LBT had written for the latter two on another series, "Lime Street"] together in the same room and let 'em talk."). But you're right: CBS could have easily rejected casting Dixie, citing her poor track record with sitcoms in the past.

[MissLlanviewPA]

I suppose you could argue that Andrea Evans would have gotten there had her stalker not run her off of OLTL in 1990.

And Vanessa Marcil attained a smaller level of it herself when she was originally on GH (starring in that Prince video, being named to People's Most Beautiful list, hosting the show In Concert, starring in the movie The Rock with Nicolas Cage, getting 90210 almost right after she left GH the first time).

I forgot she was on Filthy Rich (I remembered Delta being on it, though). Good point.

Kim did get a guest appearance on Seinfeld when she was off GL in the early 90's, which was obviously a pretty big deal for any actor back then.

[frequentsoapfan]

What's the argument for Andrea Evans? What popular series did she have roles in outside of soaps?

I'll give you Vanessa Marcil.

[MissLlanviewPA]

*facepalm* You know what? I was thinking of soap stars recognized outside of the daytime world when I said her. I forgot about the outside work part. My bad.

[frequentsoapfan]

Andrea Evans isnt really recognized outside of soaps.

[MissLlanviewPA]

I think she might have been in her late 80's heyday, though. It was a pretty big deal when she came back, became more popular then than when she was there rhe first time, and then suddenly left out of nowhere (I don't think many people knew why she left until years later).

Of course, YMMV. That was just my impression.

[tune_in_tomorrow]

I agree with Khan that Lucci, Geary and Francis are really the only soap stars who have/had significant recognition outside the genre while they were still on their respective shows, even in soaps' peak years. Nobody else crossed over as I recall - Brenda Dickson had a poster in the '80s and all the networks used soap stars on their game shows but that didn't catapult them to widespread fame. But to the initial point, there are TONS of daytime stars who went on to steady employment in the industry so Nancy Lee Grahn's and Kim Zimmer's comments to the contrary don't ring true. It might be harder if you hang around too long and get pigeonholed as the same character, but that's just as true for many long-term prime time actors. It takes talent, looks and luck, and, I imagine, a reputation of being relatively easy to work with unless you bring a lot of other positives and an audience with you.

[Pine Charles]

If they have Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve and Talent, they will make it! hehe

[kalbir]

IMO the only daytime actor that became well known to those who don't watch daytime at all is Susan Lucci. She's the only actor whose Daytime Emmy win was a People magazine cover story.

[CBRVA83]

Cameron Mathison is another AMC vet current/former soap star that was/is recognized outside of soaps when he hosted the "I Wanna Be A Soap Star" reality show on SOAPnet, DWTS, and being currently a contributing correspondent reporter for Good Morning America on ABC, along with his Hallmark Channel TV films. Yet another one from AMC is Aiden Turner who also did DWTS and is currently on the Tyler Perry primetime soap "If Loving You Is Wrong" on OWN.

[QueenOfHearts]

I'll give you Cam but Aiden no. Most people wouldn't recognize him a and strongly identify him from a soap. At least not any more than the other people who wor ked on a soap and now work on a primetime show.

[jcren]

I think it is just timing and luck. I have seen successful Broadway actors try to break into film/tv and successful tv/film stars try to work magic in live theater. It is not for everyone. It is rare for someone to be able to do it all and do it well.

Also I think EB is another recognizable soap star. I never thought it before but I still remember very clearly going to see Titanic and when he appeared on the screen my entire theater went "Victor Newman!" and I burst out laughing.

[applcin]

Tony Geary and Genie Francis made the cover of People and Newsweek without having won any at the time. I think maybe Time Magazine also. "Wedding of the Year" plus Elizabeth Taylor. Lucci, I think became well known because of her longevity and "always a bridesmaid" thing with the Emmys, plus she was like the Scarlett O'Hara of daytime. Geary and Francis basically exploded into huge fame and popularity. Thirty million people watched Luke & Laura get married.