Sean Kanan on being a 'General Hospital' father 15 years later - Exclusive Interview

I had the opportunity to catch up with Sean Kanan, best known for portraying Deacon Sharpe on The Young and the Restless and The Bold & the Beautiful, and A.J. Quartermaine on General Hospital.

I spoke to Sean about returning to General Hospital, who he'd like to work with, a peek into AJ's future, and more!

Me: Can you tell us a few details about your return as to General Hospital, as we know you had just come of stints as Deacon on Y&R and B&B

SK: Yeah, like you said I had been working on both Y&R and more recently B&B. I was having a great time at B&B. I loved playing Deacon. I got a call from my agent and she said that there may be an opportunity for you to go back General Hospital, and I said "Huh, really? That's amazing I never thought that would happen." She said don't put it out of your mind and it's something that may potentially get started with discussions in about eight weeks. As soon as she said that she called me back like two days later and said that the producer, Frank Valentini wants to meet me in his office. So instead of it being 8 weeks it was morel like 3 days. Frank and I really hit it off. He's a interesting guy. He's incredibly an talented and gifted producer. I knew when I left that there was a pretty good chance this would happen. By the time I got home, my agent called and said, " I think that went really well, I think this is going to happen." Before you know it, it was like 3 weeks later, I was back on the show.

Me: How did it feel returning to General Hospital after a 15-year absence?

SK: Surreal. It was surreal, to be honest. It was like everything was completely familiar, but oddly different. So many of the crew people I knew from before were still there and there were lots of people that were new. It felt weird for a good month. I think now it feels pretty good, but it definitely felt strange for about a month.

Me: AJ and Carly have been in each other's orbit a lot recently. What do you think of an AJ/Carly reunion and how is it to work with Laura Wright (Carly)?

SK: I love working with Laura. I think she's got really great comedic chops. I think when I work with Laura it brings out something in me that is very much "our thing." I think that AJ has a tremendous amount of animosity towards Carly, but there is an undeniable about of attraction - and she is the mother of his child. Even with everything that he feels about her that is so negative, she did give him Michael whom he loves so much.

Photo: ABC

Me: This time on General Hospital you get a chance to be a father figure to Michael (Chad Duell). Can you speak on undertaking this new role?

SK: I don't know that if I would be able to play being a father [15 years ago] with as much depth as I can now, since I am a father now. So this definitely came along at the right time. Chad Duell is a terrific kid, and a terrific actor. He makes it very easy for me to feel an affection towards him that I believe translates to the screen.

Me: What can we expect from AJ over the course of the next few months on GH?

SK: I think that we're going to see a different side of AJ. I think we are going to see AJ in crisis and very much struggling to stay a float.

Me: Is there anyone on the show that you have not worked with so far that you would like to work with in the future? 

SK: I'd like to work with Jon Lindstrom (Kevin). I have a lot of respect for Jon and he'd be fun to work with. I like working with Ian Buchanan (Duke), he's such a nice guy and a gentleman. I'd like to work with Finola Hughes (Anna) as well.

Me: Thanks for taking the time to talk with me today! 

SK: I really appreciate it. Take care of yourself!

You can catch Sean Kanan as AJ on General Hospital, which airs weekdays at 2PM ET on ABC.