General Hospital has a new therapist for Anna, because Kevin Collins is off in Ireland
Kearran Giovanni has officially arrived on General Hospital — but the big question now is who she’s playing.
Bit of a shake-up on General Hospital this week: Kearran Giovanni has turned up on our screens, bringing a bit of her Major Crimes pedigree to Port Charles. If you watched her as Amy Sykes on TNT’s long-running police drama, you’ll recognise her immediately; for everyone else, she’s about to become a fairly significant presence in the hospital’s latest round of emotional fallout.
Kearran Giovanni debuted as Dr. Nichols, Anna Devane’s new therapist, on Thursday, September 10.
Who is Dr. Nichols?
The new face belongs to Dr. Nichols, a mental health specialist who is stepping in to help Anna Devane pick up the pieces after a mind-bending stretch in a French treatment facility. Anna’s been through the wringer, even by soap standards. She spent ages in France, nominally for her own good, but really played her doctors to get out. Back in Port Charles, she’s shadowed (almost literally) by the haunting spectre of Peter August – the kind of plot device that’d make you double-check your own prescriptions. It led her right to the edge, nearly pushing her to try and kill Britt Westbourne. Luckily, Jason Morgan swooped in and prevented an actual murder, and Anna sort of snapped out of her psychosis by firing a gun at the hallucination of Peter. Classic GH melodrama: burglary, visions, near-murder, therapy – all in a day's work.
Why bring in a new therapist?
Soap fans might wonder why Anna isn’t seeing her usual shrink, Dr. Kevin Collins. Apparently, Jon Lindstrom’s character is off in Ireland teaching (as you do), so someone else had to fill the therapist’s chair. Enter Dr. Nichols. She’s introduced in dialogue as if she’s been part of the General Hospital staff forever, but – like a lot of soap professionals – she’s never actually appeared on camera until now. It’s the old 'long-time, first-time' routine.
Kearran Giovanni’s TV soap credentials
If Giovanni’s face has that déjà vu quality, it’s probably from her stint on One Life to Live back in 2009. She played Dr. Vivian Wright in a recurring role, which also means she’s worked with Frank Valentini before – he was running OLTL then and is at the wheel for General Hospital now. So, there’s a bit of a reunion vibe behind the scenes, if you’re into daytime TV lore.
- Kearran Giovanni is best known for Detective Amy Sykes in Major Crimes
- Previously played Dr. Vivian Wright on One Life to Live
- Dr. Nichols is helping Anna recover after traumatic hallucinations
- Her predecessor, Dr. Kevin Collins, is supposedly in Ireland
- General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC