General Hospital paid tribute to series alum Johnny Wactor, who was fatally shot on May 25.
While the show previously issued a statement mourning the loss of Wactor, Deadline reports that a card paying tribute to the late actor was displayed on Tuesday night’s (June 11) installment. At the end of the episode, a picture of Wactor appeared alongside the following words: “In loving memory of Johnny Wactor.”
37-year-old Wactor was killed in Los Angeles after discovering a group of men surrounding his car that were reportedly trying to steal his catalytic converter. According to both Deadline and People, his cause of death was confirmed to be a gunshot wound to his chest by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner, and his passing was listed as a homicide.
Wactor was on his way back from a bartending shift, accompanying his co-worker Anita Joy to her car.
Joy opened up in an Instagram post shared on May 29, explaining, “I was with Johnny in his last moments and I’m here to be his voice after such unimaginable events.” She recalled the traumatic night, highlighting that they “cautiously approached the men, questioning what they were doing, at first thinking the car was being towed.”
“We were no threat and Johnny kept his cool as he always did, simply stating that it was his car and for them to leave. Hands open to his sides in peace,” she penned.
Noting that was “Johnny was between [her] and the man who shot him,” she shared that he “forcefully tumbled back into my arms” once he was shot.
“… and as I grabbed for him, I shouted, ‘Hunny, you OK?!’ And he only responded, ‘Nope! Shot!’” she wrote. “We toppled onto the street, where I pushed my legs under him and tried to hold his body up while screaming for help and screaming at him to stay with me.”
Grant, Wactor’s younger brother, shared a similar story while confirming his brother’s passing to The Daily Mail, explaining that Johnny “came across them and he thought his truck was being towed.”
“So he said something to the guys, like, ‘Hey, are you towing?’” Grant added. “And then once he turned around, he saw what was happening and he put his coworker behind him. And that’s when they shot him.”
Wactor played Brando Corbin on General Hospital in over 160 episodes from 2020-2022. After his character was killed off, he praised viewers for their support, telling fans on Instagram at the time, “I had no idea you guys cared so much about my character.”
