Relative daytime newbie Coby Ryan McLaughlin just recently wrapped up his short-lived role as The Young and the Restless' Andrew Lynford, so he was pretty surprised when his agent told him there was another soap opera role that he would be a perfect fit for: General Hospital's Shiloh.
Understandingly, the handsome actor was a little shocked when he read the character description and learned just what kind of guy his potential Port Charles alter ego would be. But he jumped right in with both feet, starting with what sounds like a very interesting audition process.
McLaughlin tells Soap Opera Digest that he has known GH casting director Mark Teschner for a long time, because his former acting coach John Homa was also an acting coach on the ABC soap opera. That allowed him to feel completely at ease during his audition and make some rather bold choices.
"When I read for Frank (Valentini, GH executive producer) and the rest of the producers, I made some choices that I thought would make people in the room uncomfortable," he shares. "I thought, 'It's a creepy dude, I might as well!' There's no reason to play it safe with somebody like this. You have to channel your inner freak."
Whatever crazy acting stunts he pulled obviously worked, and his version of Shiloh was born. And while that's great news for fans, it might not be great news for the residents of Port Charles. Shiloh has already raised a few eyebrows, having been revealed as the leader of the cult Dawn of Day and as having the previous identity of David Henry "Hank" Archer.
Whatever other mysterious tricks Shiloh has up his sleeve remain to be seen, and it is not clear how long he'll stick around in Port Charles. In any case, McLaughlin reports he's having a blast working so closely with Kelly Monaco (Samantha McCall).
"She's rad. She's wonderful," he raves. "I mean, she's a Philly chick. I went to school at Penn State. I've spent a lot of time on the East Coast and so she and I really bonded over that. We have a great time. She's super cool and really chill."
In addition to playing Y&R's Andrew -- who helped Ashley (Eileen Davidson) fake a DNA test to trick Jack (Peter Bergman) into thinking he wasn't really an Abbott -- McLaughlin has many primetime credits to his name. They include shows like Parenthood, Two and a Half Men, Castle, The X-Files, Graceland, Women's Murder Club, NCIS, and The Crossing.
What are your opinions on GH's Shiloh? Are you liking the way Coby Ryan McLaughlin is bringing the creepy character to life? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
