GH's Monaco Joins FOOTBALL WIVES in First Use of New Contract Flexibility

The loss or gain (or return) of a major star is a surefire way to gamble with the ratings, and network and show execs have been criticized in the past for being particularly unwilling to work with hot, young actors tempted by outside projects. (GENERAL HOSPITAL is famously rumored to have sealed the end-of-contract departure of Jacob Young--then GH's "Lucky Spencer," now ALL MY CHILDREN's "J.R. Chandler"--when they refused to allow him to take a role the Renny Harlin-Sylvester Stallone film Driven.)

That is why many observers were surprised when ABC Daytime and GH were able to come to terms with a clearly happy Kelly Monaco ("Samantha McCall," ex-"Livvie Locke Morley," PORT CHARLES). Though the negotiations went down to the wire, Monaco--a ripe candidate for daytime departure if there ever was one (after raising her profile considerably by winning the first season of the breakout hit Dancing with the Stars)--declared that the show had given her unprecedented flexibility in exchange for ABC having exclusive rights to any prime-time "branching" she might seek to do.

The details were vague, and rumors had Monaco reporting to the set of DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES for work seemingly every week (she wasn't). It now turns out that fate had an entirely different ABC nighttime soap in mind for Monaco: the highly anticipated, star-heavy British import FOOTBALL WIVES (based on the British hit soap Footballer's Wives). Monaco will be a featured guest star (hello, Heather Locklear!) for an undetermined amount of episodes, joining a cast that already includes Lucy Lawless, DAWSON'S CREEK's James Van DerBeek, SUNSET BEACH and Third Watch's Eddie Cibrian, real football wife Holly Robinson Peete of 21 Jump Street, and film star Ving Rhames, among others.

And what about GH? Despite Monaco's "Sam" being played in very heavy story, the show has let her out as required without objection. While a temporary recast was considered, GH decided to shoot around Monaco's schedule instead, confirming that the flexibility built into Monaco's contract by ABC is indeed extensive.

Should the experiment work, it may serve as a model for future contract renewals with breakout stars, allowing soaps to keep much needed (and significantly happier, no doubt) fan favorites, while allowing said favorites the chance to do the kind of outside projects that will not only serve their careers, but might also make new fans willing to follow them back to their "day job." Sounds like a win-win to me...if a potentially more complicated one.

Soap Star #4 Updates: DAYS Scribe Judges, This Time YOU Decide

More on SoapNet's 4th season of it's popular reality show I WANNA BE A SOAP STAR: The show will continue in it's successful format, and with popular host Cameron Mathison, but will feature a new judge at the table with consummate soap insider Michael Bruno, and veteran actress Debi Morgan ("Dr. Angie Hubbard," ALL MY CHILDREN, "Dr. Ellen Burgess," PORT CHARLES, GENERATIONS, BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL, etc.), new DAYS OF OUR LIVES (and AS THE WORLD TURNS turn-around magician) Hogan Sheffer.

Sheffer (seen right), a large personality with a colorful vocabulary to boot, should make for some interesting TV, without a doubt, and the way he'll gel personally with equally large personalities Bruno and Morgan is an uncertain prospect at best. However, Sheffer's inclusion as a judge, a first for any soap head writer as well, will be particularly interesting this season as the winner and audience knows that the prize of a 13-week contract with DAYS, and where that small stint has the potential to go long-term, will ultimately fall into the hands of Sheffer himself.

What will not fall into Sheffer (or any of the judge's) hands is the selection of this season's winner. Following significant fan outcry from last year's selection of Mikey Jerome as show winner, fans will, for the first time in the show's history, now be the ones who select the winner from the show's two finalists.

ABC announces soap-free DANCING WITH THE STARS

This week, ABC announced the celebrity line-up for the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars and for the first time in four seasons, the contestant roster will not feature a soap star among their ranks. Previous seasons have featured GENERAL HOSPITAL's Kelly Monaco ("Sam McCall," ex-"Livvie Locke, PORT CHARLES), the first season winner, DAYS OF OUR LIVES star (and SoapNet host) Lisa Rinna (ex-"Billie Reed"), and Saved by the Bell's Mario Lopez (under contract as "Dr. Christian Ramirez" at the time of his selection for Dancing).

While the season's likely surefire inspirational favorite, Heather Mills McCartney (an amputee who will compete using a prosthetic leg), did play herself on DAYS in a one day appearance to counsel Kyle Brandt's "Philip Kirakis" (a core character who lost a leg serving in Iraq), one can't help but wonder if message board protests--and several comments by first season runner-up John O'Hurley--that the passionate loyalty of soap opera fans led to block voting and disproportionate success by Monaco and Lopez (Rinna did not make it to the final dance-off) was a factor. [Monaco countered the accusation on CNN's Larry King Live, pointing out that while GH averages 3 million or so viewers, O'Hurley is best known for Seinfeld, which consistently drew 5 or more times GH's numbers and has a passionate fan base of its own.]

Alas, another possibility is that, having utilized soap talent to lure a core base of fans for what was initially an uncertain proposition, the Dancing brass has decided they no longer need the soap community and have decided to look beyond the "soap level" for their celebrities. If so, that would be a shame...