When John Oliver announced on Sunday that he’d soon be guest-starring on Peacock’s Days of Our Lives and ABC’s General Hospital, conspiracy theorists wondered whether he’d tricked each soap into thinking he was appearing exclusively on theirs.
Gold Derby has discovered that wasn’t the case.
Sources at both long-running programs exclusively confirmed that they were aware Oliver was double-dipping. And there is nothing but love between the rival networks. “We appreciate the support for the genre — it is great for everyone,” a person with knowledge of the situation told us.
“What is funnier than being in one soap opera? Being in two!” the comedian said on Sunday’s episode of Last Week Tonight With John Oliver.
On Days, Oliver plays a bespectacled man wearing an enormous wig and dressed in a gray suit. His three-episode arc streams on Peacock on Aug. 11, 12, and 14.
On GH, he’s a confident character wearing all black who’s flanked by two armed security guards. He appears on ABC and Hulu this Thursday, Friday, and next Monday. Watch the first trailer:
The acting gigs have been in the works since March 8, when the Last Week Tonight host publicly lobbied to be cast on a soap opera in a “juicy” role with a “ridiculous” name. “Write me a role, and I will be on your set so fast, it will make your head spin,” he said at the time. The shows were quick to oblige.
But is it possible Oliver can be nominated at the Daytime Emmys for both roles in the Best Guest Performer category?
A representative for the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences tells Gold Derby it is too early to comment on eligibility and contest rules for next year’s competition, which is when Oliver will contend. Recent winners of that Daytime Emmy race include Dick Van Dyke (Days of Our Lives), Alley Mills (General Hospital), and Ted King (The Bold and the Beautiful).
Oliver already has one Daytime Emmy nomination to his name for writing the special class program The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear (2011), so, depending on NATAS’ eventual ruling, he could soon be earning two more bids for his stints on General Hospital and Days of Our Lives.
The talk show host’s overflowing trophy shelf currently includes 23 Primetime Emmys, one Grammy, four PGA Awards, and four WGA Awards, among others.
Days of Our Lives executive producer Ken Corday said of the stunt-casting, “When John Oliver said, ‘Call me soaps, I’m available and willing to travel. I want to be a part of that world,’ our world, we had to heed the call!”
General Hospital executive producer Frank Valentini added, “He was everything you’d hope he’d be: prepared, professional, funny, and genuinely kind to everyone on set. He plays an integral character in the story, and I can’t wait for fans to see who he crosses paths with in Port Charles.”
