Dominic Zamprogna Teases Interest In Returning To ‘General Hospital’ As Dante
Actor Dominic Zamprogna thinks that it is time for Dante Falconeri to return home to Port Charles, and the former General Hospital cast member wants to step back into the role rather than see it recast. Zamprogna always said he was open to short-term storylines after deciding to depart about two years ago. Now, however, he’s singing a different tune.
In the new issue of ABC Soaps In Depth, Zamprogna makes it clear that he is serious about his interest in returning to the show for more than a brief visit. In fact, he explains that he has talked with executive Frank Valentini about the possibility.
“Frank knows I am ready to come home and I’d be totally open to a contract,” Zamprogna says.
Until now, Zamprogna had always expressed an interest in returning to General Hospital as long as it was just a short-term arc. Now, he’s ready to do more.
“Since last September, I started to really feel the pull back– because GH is a huge part of my life… I love that place, I love those people, and I love that job,” Zamprogna says, as he details that he never intended to disappear forever.
What will Dante do to save his marriage? #GH today! pic.twitter.com/6reGcydUmp
— General Hospital (@GeneralHospital) June 30, 2015
During his absence, Zamprogna has remained close to Maurice Benard (Sonny), Lisa LoCicero (Olivia), and Emme Rylan (Lulu) as well as Steve Burton (Jason) and Chad Duell (Michael). He has even met actor Mark Lawson, who plays Lulu’s current love interest in General Hospital.
Lulu is involved with Dustin at the moment, but fans have always been clamoring to have Dante back. As teasers about this new interview emerged over the past week, viewers made it clear they want Zamprogna back on a contract as soon as possible.
“It was about taking chances and being my best self,” the GH actor says of his decision to leave two years ago.
Zamprogna says he didn’t leave the show on bad terms and he left after being with the show for a decade so he could do some work on himself. Now, he says, he feels he’s benefitted from that time away and he’s ready to move forward. Apparently, moving forward in his career led him to look at returning to General Hospital.
While Zamprogna was open about wanting to return, it doesn’t sound as if anything is official yet. There have been numerous references to Dante in recent episodes, but the show is navigating a challenging time right now in ways that have nothing to do with the character of Dante.
Filming stopped in mid-March due to the coronavirus and has yet to begin again. ABC has pre-filmed episodes of General Hospital to air throughout most of May. Unfortunately, if filming hasn’t resumed by then, they’ll need to air all repeats.
Given all of that, it’s probably too soon to make any assumptions about whether Valentini and the writers are ready to bring Dante back to Port Charles to shake things up again.
SheKnows Soaps doesn’t detail much of anything regarding Lulu, Dustin, or Dante in terms of General Hospital spoilers for the next couple of weeks. However, it does seem possible that something might develop on this front come mid-summer or so and fans will be anxiously waiting to see what happens.
