‘General Hospital’: Maurice Benard Says He Was ‘Intimidated’ By Rena Sofer
On General Hospital, Maurice Benard plays mobster Sonny Corinthos. Corinthos is very intimidating, but Benard is very much the opposite. His podcast, State of Mind, promotes the importance of speaking about every aspect of mental health.
Benard has many guests who are soap actors, but others from all walks of life. His goal is to let the listener know that they are not alone. Benard has opened up about his own struggles with mental health. He lives with bipolar disorder but had kept it a secret for a long time.
He went public in 2000 in the hopes of helping others. He is very forthcoming about both his illness and his treatment. “When I speak out, people tell me they feel like they’re not alone,” Benard told People. “I’ve now been on lithium 27 years straight. I think I’ve done all right.” Recently, he sat down with his former General Hospital co-star, Rena Sofer.
Maurice Benard was intimidated by Rena Sofer
Benard admits to once being “nervous all the time,” especially in his early days on General Hospital. He eventually moved past his nerves, but back then, certain people intimidated him. One of those people was Sofer.
She wasn’t the only actor who made him nervous, “You and Genie Francis were the ones who intimidated me.” He also spoke about her intense icy blue eyes and how her gaze was also intimidating. Sofer had no idea she created nerves in her co-star.
But she did tell a story about Vanessa Marcil, who played Brenda Barrett on the soap. One day, Marcil was late and didn’t know her lines. Sofer had a problem with this and believes she may have let her feelings know because it never happened again. Maybe she was intimidating after all!
Rena Sofer on ‘General Hospital’
Sofer played Lois Cerullo on General Hospital. Cerullo was an unforgettable character with an unforgettable accent. She first came to Port Charles from Brooklyn as a manager for singer Eddie Maine, aka Ned Quartermaine. The two eventually fell in love and got married. They have a daughter together, Brook Lynn Quartermaine.
Cerullo found something else in Port Charles. An old friend from Bensonhurst happened to be Port Charles mob boss Sonny Corinthos. The two renewed their friendship and became very close. Sofer won a Daytime Emmy for her role on General Hospital.
When Sofer spoke to Benard on State of Mind, she told him how she loved her GH character. “Lois lived in me,” she said. “When I grow up, I want to be Lois.”
Where else have we seen Rena Sofer?
Sofer’s first soap role was as Rocky McKenzie in Loving from 1988-1991. She then played Cerullo from 1993-1996. She came back to soaps in 2013, playing Quinn Fuller on The Bold and the Beautiful. She left the role in 2022.
Sofer’s resume includes many guest-starring roles on hit shows. She was the baby store salesgirl who flirted with Ross Geller (David Schwimmer) on Friends. She played a former girlfriend of Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen) on Two and a Half Men and a love interest for George Costanza (Jason Alexander) on Seinfeld.
Other guest appearances include Ghost Whisperer, Once Upon a Time, Heroes, and Dirty Sexy Money. Now that Sofer is no longer on The Bold and The Beautiful, General Hospital fans are hoping that Lois Cerullo will come back to Port Charles.
