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In 2021, General Hospital welcomed a new actor: Nicholas Chavez. The 22-year-old plays Spencer Cassadine, who had returned to Port Charles after a few years away at boarding school in Europe.

When Chavez first joined the cast, he had to get acquainted with the way General Hospital operates. Like many newbies, he made a few mistakes, including a “goofy” one.

Avery Pohl and Nicholas Chavez standing next to each other during a scene on 'General Hospital'
Avery Pohl and Nicholas Chavez on ‘General Hospital’ | Craig Sjodin via Getty Images

‘General Hospital’ is Nicholas Chavez’s first big acting gig

Chavez grew up in Denver and got into acting in high school. After graduating, he attended an acting conservatory in New Jersey before trying to pursue a career in Hollywood.

In the spring of 2021, he was staying in Florida, where his family lives, when he got the chance to audition for the role of Spencer. As he shared with Soap Opera Digest: “There were 12 to 15 guys there and they were all gorgeous. They were all just stunning! And so I’m looking around and I’m like, ‘Jeez, this is some stiff competition!’”

Fortunately, the next day, Chavez got the news that he had been selected to play Spencer.

“It was one of the happiest moments of my entire life,” he said. “I think I screamed! I completely freaked out. I had no cool about myself; there was no composure anywhere in this! I called my family and my dad kept smacking himself on the forehead. He couldn’t believe it. He was like, ‘Am I dreaming? When am I going to wake up?’ It was really cute.”

Chavez had plans to travel back to Florida, but he decided not to get on that return flight. Instead, he quickly settled down in Los Angeles to begin his new job.

Nicholas Chavez made 1 ‘goofy mistake’ during his first day on set

When he first started working at General Hospital, Chavez had a lot to learn about the process of filming a soap opera.

“I made home movies and a couple of independent things with my family and friends when I was a kid, but other than that, I had never been on camera,” he told the Dishing With Digest podcast. “I had pretty much done all theater training.”

He continued, “I had an idea in my mind of what it might be like. And the idea in my mind was ‘Alright, we’re filming in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Action!’ And none of that happened.”

Because of his preconceived notions, Chavez shared that he made some “goofy mistakes.”

“The countdown thing is such a silly thing,” Chavez said. “They don’t say ‘1.’ They count down to ‘2’ and then you’re just supposed to start the scene. So they go, ‘5, 4, 3, 2,’ and I’m still standing there. I’m like, ‘Do I—do I go?’ So it was a lot of really, really goofy technical mistakes.”

Nicholas Chavez has been getting close to other cast members

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‘General Hospital’: Nicholas Chavez Says He Gets a ‘Masterclass’ Whenever He Works With 1 Co-Star

After joining the cast, Chavez also got the chance to meet other actors on the show. 

For example, he has become friends with fellow young actors with whom he has many scenes, such as Sydney Mikayla (Trina Robinson), Eden McCoy (Josslyn Jacks), William Lipton (Cameron Webber), and Avery Pohl (Esme Prince).

Chavez also told Dishing With Digest that he hangs out with Johnny Wactor (Brando Corbin) and Marcus Coloma (Nikolas Cassadine), who both introduced him to rock-climbing.

“I feel very blessed to have those kinds of friendships and relationships when I show up to work,” Chavez said.

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