Susan Lucci Says There’s ‘Buzz’ About ‘All My Children’ Reboot, Denounces ‘Real Housewives’ As Today’s Soaps

Susan Lucci says there’s room for All My Children to make a comeback. The soap opera legend said there continues to be “buzz” about a revival of the iconic ABC sudser, and she made it clear that today’s reality shows aren’t a suitable replacement for Erica Kane’s antics.

At the recent Go Red for Women event at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City, Lucci, 73, said she is open to an All My Children reboot nearly a decade after the show’s cliffhanger ending left fans in a frenzy.

“We are hearing a little buzz,” Lucci said of a potential AMC reboot, according to Page Six.“It’s just important to be in the right hands. Lorraine Broderick was the head writer and I know that she’s a beautiful writer, so if she was [on board] that would help a lot.”

The longtime daytime star revealed that she still keeps in touch with most of the original cast, crew, and production team from All My Children.

Lucci also made it clear that while classic soaps like All My Children and One Life to Live have disappeared from television, reality shows like The Real Housewives franchise don’t fill their shoes.

“I don’t think they are the modern-day soaps,” Lucci said. “There’s no storytelling. There’s a lot of editing. It’s, like, they cut to the chase all the time, and I think it’s different.”

Lucci did acknowledge that while reality stars are “great at entertaining,” she doesn’t think “they’re the same” as seasoned soap stars.

Lucci’s remarks come more than five years after Bravo producer Andy Cohen compared the Real Housewives franchise to soap operas. The Bravo executive said he feels the unscripted drama on his network serves as a replacement for the dying soap opera genre for a lot of people.

While Lucci clearly doesn’t agree with that assessment, several former soap stars, including Lisa Rinna (Days of our Lives) and Eileen Davidson (The Young & the Restless) have signed on as stars on the Real Housewives franchise. Current Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast member Denise Richards is even doing double duty on The Bold and the Beautiful.

This is not the first time Lucci has teased a potential All My Children revival. The Emmy-winning actress previously told Yahoo Entertainment that there have long been talks to bring the beloved soap back in another incarnation, and that original AMC creator Agnes Nixon had storylines in mind to explain the show’s cliffhanger ending. Sadly, Nixon died in 2016.

Lucci starred on All My Children as Pine Valley diva Erica Kane for 41 years and famously won a coveted Emmy Award in 1999 for her role after 19 nominations.

All My Children aired on ABC from January 5, 1970, to September 23, 2011, and ended its daytime run with an impressive 10,700 episodes.