If you’ve been keeping up with General Hospital, you know Curtis Ashford isn’t always the easiest character to root for. Emphasis on always. But in a recent interview on the Soapy podcast, portrayer Donnell Turner proves he’s even more impressive than the character he plays on the ABC daytime drama.
Celebrating a decade on the show, Donnell sat down with former co-star Rebecca Budig (ex-Hayden Barnes, now Taylor on The Bold and the Beautiful) and Greg Rikaart (Days of Our Lives) and got real about his journey. And honestly, it’s the ultimate “it’s never too late” story.
He opened up about the unexpected paths he took before finally landing his soap role, how he works to keep things positive and fair on set, and how his mentorship and charitable efforts began.
From Set Stories to Second Chances
Interestingly, Donnell didn’t originally audition for Curtis Ashford. He went out for a different role that ultimately went to Anthony Montgomery. But the network clearly saw something in him, because they created the role of Curtis specifically for him.
And the way he found out? Very old school. A script just showed up at his door. At the time, he wasn’t even sure which character he was playing because no one had officially called him yet.
He spoke with a lot of pride about being part of the first real Black legacy family on the show. Turner has a very deep bond with his onscreen family, specifically Vernee Watson (Aunt Stella), whom he considers a real-life aunt. He also mentioned his “platonic” closeness with Brook Kerr (Portia) and his protective, fatherly role toward Tabyana Ali (Trina), whom he is currently trying to mentor about life and finances.
Donnell Turner Recalls An Incident on Set
When asked a fan question, Donnell shared a pretty cringey (but accidental) story about a mishap with Briana Nicole Henry, who was the second actress to play Jordan Ashford.
“I don’t know if it’s funny, but we were going down the stairs from the set one day,” he recalls. He adds, “Being the gentleman I aspire to be, I was holding the door for everyone coming down the stairs, and I thought the gentleman behind me was going to grab the door, and he didn’t. And so the door closed, and one of the actresses who played Jordan, Briana.”
He adds, “She turned as the door was closing. She got lightheaded. had a big knot on her head, and she still had scenes. We were coming from a rehearsal. So yeah, I felt like trash on that one.”
He also talked about his production company, Turnaround Productions, a clever nod to his last name. He says it’s still growing, but the purpose behind it is clear.
Life Changes
Donnell shared that he bought his home and graduated from film school at age 50. While some classmates questioned why he was there as an already established actor, he said he wanted to push past his own insecurities and become the man he always envisioned.
Donnell was incredibly open about this part of his life, even though his mom originally told him not to tell anyone. He calls that version of himself a “knucklehead” and explained that he was in and out of jail for the better part of two years during his early 20s.
He was quick to clarify that it wasn’t anything “salacious” or violent, but rather a series of “stupid” mistakes. It started with a DUI for an open container. He mentioned he wasn’t “faded” but the open container was enough to land him in trouble. He recalls fighting a lot but tells his story to inspire others.
Before acting, Donnell was a semi-pro basketball player with serious talent—he was dunking in the eighth grade. He dreamt of being like Dr. J, who was the first athlete he saw cross over into movies.
However, at age 27, he ruptured his Achilles. He knew instantly that his professional sports dreams were over and saw it as “the good Lord’s way” of telling him to course-correct toward acting.
You can watch the full, incredibly candid interview on the CBS YouTube channel here:
Photo Credit: CBS Broadcasting Inc.
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