Just Breathe - A Sonny and Alexis Website

Soap Opera Digest
February 12, 2002
GH's Benard: "Don't Hate Me, Man!"
When it comes to the debate among GENERAL HOSPITAL fans as to who Sonny should paired up with, estranged wife Carly or attorney Alexis, portrayer Maurice Benard admits that he, too, is torn.
"All I can say is that I'm having a lot of fun with Nancy [Lee Grahn, Alexis], and it shows," explains the actor. "I'm not in enough scenes with Tamara [Braun, Carly], but I'm still playing [Sonny's longing] for Carly, and Tamara's playing it, too. Can't I have both [laughs]?"
Not according to many viewers, who have been very vocal about their pleasure -- and displeasure -- with Sonny's choice of companion. "At appearances, you've got both types of fans," he reports. "It's almost split in half. But I still feel the same way I've always felt [about this storyline]. Sonny loves Alexis as a person, but he's not in love with her. There's something inside of him that keeps him longing for Carly and for a family; that hasn't changed. He's having a lot of fun with Alexis, and he still loves Carly."
What has changed is Benard's experience this time around in comparison to the last time he was part of a hotly debated trio -- Sonny/Brenda/Jax. "It is different. I get a lot more negative letters now than I have in the past. I'm not used to it. I'm used to being all smooth," he laughs. "Now it's like, 'Don't hate me, man!' I'm just an actor trying to do my job. I do the best with what I've got. I'm having fun right now, which I hadn't had in awhile." That said, Benard adds, "I think it's a good thing that people are talking about this storyline because that obviously means they're watching it. And I do appreciate that interest."