‘General Hospital’ News: Hayley Erin’s New and Improved Kiki Jerome – How She Made Fans Love Her

‘General Hospital’ fans were heavily divided when it came to the recast of Kiki Jerome. Kristen Alderson was a fan favorite and GH viewers were stunned at her abrupt departure. Alderson was quickly replaced with former Y&R player Hayley Erin and that did not go over well with fans at first.

But now Hayley has been able to turn this around and earn the admiration of a legion of GH fans who accept and embrace her in this increasingly more interesting character. So how did she do it? Hayley credits the writers for starters.

A fan recently tweeted her “U have really made Kiki ur own & made her seem like a real person. You’re doing a great job & making me like a char I once hated.”

Hayley replied, “I really appreciate that. Kiki wasn’t always the deepest of characters, I’m lucky to be given such great material” and that’s really what it’s down to.

Even the best of actresses will struggle when they’re given junk material to work with – and that was the case for quite a while with Kiki. First she had the who’s my daddy drama and then it was the dual brother loving plotline. Both storylines were less than authentic.

Plus when they subbed in Hayley for Kristen, it was a visually startling adjustment. The two actresses don’t resemble in any way. Their build, hair color, facial structure and mannerisms are worlds apart, so it was admittedly jarring for fans to lay their eyes on at the beginning.

What may have helped cushion the blow for die-hard Alderson fans is that she released several statements and a video ensuring them that it was her choice to leave GH and was a spur of the moment decision on her part to exit acting for a while since she’s been doing soaps since age six.

And from there, the material that’s been written for Kiki since her father Silas Clay [Michael Easton] died has really allowed Hayley Erin to show her stuff. Her grief and downward spiral were painful to watch. And the pairing with Franco [Roger Howarth] and Nina Clay [Michelle Stafford] was genius.

Her strange relationship with these pseudo-parents and her strained relations with her mom Ava Jerome [Maura West] have been acting gold. Before, Kiki seemed like an accessory to Michael Quartermaine [Chad Duell], Morgan Corinthos [Bryan Craig] – or both.

But now she’s a feisty player in her own right. She’s got a job that puts her in the middle of the action at the MetroCourt and shares an apartment with two happily insane characters that are giving her some sense of skewed family.

And there’s Morgan. Kiki has rapidly turned from a problem child into a supportive friend for Morgan as he struggles with his bipolar diagnosis. Let’s hope that the new writers continue to develop interesting storylines for Hayley as they have done.

She’s proved she has the chops to fill Kiki’s role and fans are coming around – because Hayley has grown into the part and had better and better material in recent months. One thing fans are still not certain about, though, is Erin’s awkward “cry face”… That still needs some work!

What do you think GH fans? Have you embraced the new Kiki? Do you think Hayley Erin has made the role her own?  Do you still miss Alderson or do you think Erin is a keeper? Share your comments below and come back to Soap Opera Spy often for more ‘General Hospital’ spoilers and news.

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