“General Hospital” star Nathan Dean (Ethan) got real about his on-screen dad, Anthony Geary (Luke), in an emotional conversation with Maurice Benard (Sonny). Their talk came ahead of Dean’s highly anticipated return to the ABC soap after a six-year hiatus.
Nathan Dean Reveals Advice Anthony Geary Gave Him on ‘General Hospital’
Benard had Dean on his State of Mind podcast, where they went deep on personal issues. Along with Dean opening up about his brother’s suicide, the actor spoke about his relationship with Geary, who suddenly passed away in December 2025.
Dean reshared a story of making a massive mistake on his first day of filming the ABC soap. The actor recalled having to perform bartender tricks that went awry, leaving him thinking he was about to be fired instantly.
Geary pulled Dean aside to ease his fears, saying, ‘That was hilarious. Just do it again. They’ll fix it. “You know, the worst thing they can ever say to you is, ‘No, don’t do that.’” Dean called it the best advice he had ever gotten.
The actor explained that he and Geary turned out to be very similar, which was eventually written into their father-and-son storyline on the show.
‘General Hospital’s Nathan Dean Gets Emotional Over Anthony Geary’s Passing
When Geary retired from “General Hospital,” Dean revealed that he would frequently visit him and his husband, Claudio Gama, in Amsterdam. In fact, Dean referred to them as his European family.
However, over the past few years, Dean wasn’t able to get to Amsterdam because of work obligations. Dean was emotional as he revealed it had been a couple of years since he was in touch with Geary before he died. The actor revealed it was his wife who told him that Geary had died after she learned the news from her aunt.
“I didn’t really know what to do with that information. It was same way, like when my brother passed. I’ll grieve, but did they live the life they wanted to live? From my understanding, Tony was asleep. He passed away peacefully, but I didn’t know what to do with that. Are we ever supposed to know what to do with death? It’s an inevitable thing, but how do you then approach it?” he explained.
It was Geary’s death and their close bond that led Dean to return as Ethan on “General Hospital.” Dean felt a desire to return to pay his respects to Geary for everything he did for Dea and for all the years they spent working together.
Ethan wasn’t part of the special tribute episode to Luke and Geary. However, the character resurfaces in Port Charles this week, reuniting with his sister Lulu (Alexa Havins) on Friday, April 17.
