File this one under the most surprising news of the month.
Brad Maule has reportedly closed a deal to return to General Hospital.
Now, you may be wondering how that might be possible given that Maule’s character, Tony Jones, died 13 years ago on the ABC soap.
We have an answer.
Per TV Line, Maule will be back for a guest stint, but he won’t be alive.
Instead, multiple sources have confirmed to the outlet that Tony will be back as a ghost.
Soaps have a knack for bringing characters back from the dead, and it’s a tired old trope, so bringing the character back as a ghost is probably a good idea.
Rumors about Maule’s return emerged when Maule’s former co-star, Leslie Charleson, took to Twitter with a photo of the actor on the set of the daytime soap.
“Look who was on the show today! Brad Maule! So good to see my old pal,” the General Hospital vet tweeted.
However, the tweet did not last for very long. It was swiftly removed, meaning that Charleson probably took to Twitter before the show was ready to announce the high-profile return.
Maule first appeared as Tony in 1984 and remained with the series all the way to 2006. That’s a great run!
His final storyline was a real tearjerker, with Tony dying as a result of a mysterious plague that hit Port Charles.
Oh yes, those Daytime soaps sure are filled with drama.
Aside from General Hospital, Maule is also well-known for roles in 7th Heaven, Passions, and Charlie’s Angels.
Following his over two-decade run on General Hospital, Maule went on to star in several short movies, as well as a documentary.
According to his IMDB page, he is also part of the cast of the forthcoming zombie movie, What Doesn’t Kill Us.
We don’t know when Maule’s return to General Hospital will air, but given that Halloween is fast approaching, it’s possible Tony’s ghostly presence will arrive later this month.
What are your thoughts on the news?
Hit the comments below.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.