Top 10 Babies Who Didn't Know Where They Were in 2011
No. 10: James Franco, General Hospital
Marching to the beat of his own drum has proven successful for 2011 Oscar nominee and host James Franco. Unfortunately for General Hospital fans this year, it also meant a return to Port Charles by his Jason (Steve Burton) obsessed character, Franco. Instead of impressing the masses, Franco devastatingly disappointed. His continued dime-store attempt at transforming Franco into General Hospital’s version of Heath Ledger’s The Joker failed one again to inspire. James Franco may generate mainstream press for the ABC soap, but his acting, the character, and not to mention Franco’s storylines, are so convoluted we’d rather spend time watching the paint on one of Franco’s art pieces dry, than to see him return to Port Charles in the future.
No. 9: Eddie Matos, All My Children
Some actors just aren’t cut out for daytime. Eddie Matos is one such actor. His acting, as General Hospital’s slimy Professor Pete Marquez, was so bad in 2006/2007 we wanted him off our screen ASAP. After his time in Port Charles, we were surprised to discover how much we enjoyed him in the short-lived CBS drama Cane. More recently, his turn as The State Farm Guy also made us smile. Unfortunately, Matos’ return to daytime, as All My Children’s Reverend Ricky Torres, quickly erased any goodwill those projects had generated. Matos appeared out of place in his own skin, chewed up and spit out Pine Valley scenery faster than a riding lawnmower and his attempts at holding his own opposite Alicia Minshew often ended with him looking dazed and confused.
No. 8: Bruce Weitz, General Hospital
There’s no denying that Bruce Weitz (Anthony Zacchara) is a great actor, normally. However, in 2011, we wondered if he knew he exactly where he was. Crazy is fun, sometimes, but as a mobster, it’s starting to get a little tired. Weitz’s ZaCrazy was just downright loony tunes. What once was maniacal is now just a hot mess. In 2012, we need a mobster that is more focused on being Sonny Corinthos’ (Maurice Benard) arch nemesis than playing games with the equally as insane Dr. Lisa Niles (Brianna Brown).
No. 7: Francisco San Martin, Days of Our Lives
Good looks can only get you far, and a winning smile even further. Former Days of Our Lives star Francisco San Martin possesses both and used them to his advantage when making a first impression as Dario Hernandez. Unfortunately, it’s impossible for most people to go the distance without talent or experience and San Martin wasn’t the exception that proved the rule. To be fair, Dena Higley’s writing didn’t do him any favors and the Days of Our Lives casting department is known for emphasizing eye candy above all else. Hopefully, the next time we see him on our screens his acting abilities will match his good looks.
No. 6: Julia Pace Mitchell, The Young and the Restless
It’s no secret that we here at Daytime Confidential have been yelling from the top of our lungs that we want more diversity on The Young and The Restless. However, what we received on every 1st and 15th of each month on YR wasn’t exactly what we wanted. Julia Pace Mitchell’s portrayal of Sofia Dupre Winters in 2011 surely didn’t help things along. When Sofia wasn’t being a “Sassy Black Woman,” in outfits so loud in color a hard of hearing Grandmother could hear them, she was sleeping with her husband’s brother, Neil (Kristoff St. John). We’ll refrain from going into detail about that cringe-worthy couch romp. It seemed Mitchell’s acting was either underwhelming or over the top, complete with neck rolling, all year. It’s a shame we even had to put Mitchell on this list. She seemed to have potential in 2010, but that disappeared this year. Hopefully in 2012, wardrobe can find some softer colors for Sofia to wear and the writers will revamp this Dru-Droid of a character.
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No. 5: Texas Battle, The Bold and the Beautiful
Two-time offender Texas Battle just hasn't learned to use his downtime on The Bold and the Beautiful to reign in his church play-esque acting. All he seems to do is amp up his histrionics and once again, make an utter fool of himself. In his three-year tenure at The Bold and the Beautiful, you would've thought he gained a crash course in acting 101, just by watching Susan Flannery. Instead, Battle resorted to his paint-by-the-numbers performance and hammed it up when he appeared onscreen. It baffles the mind that Battle landed a plum role on MTV's Death Valley, where he was surprisingly ok in the role as hot head cop, John, "John-John" Johnson. However, on B&B he continues to eat more scenery than a fat kid at a Chuck E. Cheese party.
No. 4: Nafessa Williams, One Life to Live
Deanna Forbes should have stayed in Dayton, Ohio. She may not have been so lost, because Nafessa Williams certainly needed a GPS to find her way around Llanview, Pa. Was she supposed to be pining for James Ford, shooting a porno with his brother or trying to get the cash to find her mother? Whatever she was there for, Williams certainly did not have us begging for Deanna to stay. We just hope she found her way safely out of town.
No. 3: Yvonne Zima, The Young and the Restless
Only the good Lord above knows why Maria Arena Bell keeps bringing Yvonne Zima back to The Young and the Restless. It isn't like she has a huge fanbase, or one at all. No matter whom Zima's half-baked Daisy Carter is paired opposite of on Y&R, she just doesn't reap the benefits and skills from her onscreen partner. She doesn't "pop," as Arena Bell puts it, in scenes at all. One would think–after being in storylines with Michael Graziadei, Greg Rikaart, and Tracy Bregman–Zima would have brought some life to her sleepwalking character, but it never happened.
Not even going toe-to-toe with Y&R dynamo Michelle Stafford did anything to spark some sort of acting for Zima. Instead, Stafford was forced to work those scenes as if she were acting by herself. No matter what meaty materials Zima is given, she doesn't live up to the legacy of her character's mother Sheila or her portrayer Kimberlin Brown. With everyone in the soap press panning Zima's acting abilities, it would make sense for her to disappear like a thief in the night. Instead, she returns, much like in the movie Groundhog's Day, to terrorize viewers with her presence onscreen. Lord in the morning, please let 2011 be the end of Zima's many returns.
No. 2: Andrew Trischitta, One Life to Live
When Andrew Trischitta stepped into the role of Jack Manning on One Life to Live, we all had an open mind about this newcomer to daytime. However, as the weeks passed on, it was apparent that this baby just didn’t know what he was. In 2011, his character was thrust into a front burner, public service announcement bullying story, and Trischitta just wasn’t able to command the story as he should. We were subjected to watching his deer in headlights look, coupled with the same emotion for almost every scene for weeks on end. We can only hope that his onscreen veteran soap actor parents, Blair Cramer (Kassie DePaiva), Tea Delgado (Florencia Lozano), and Todd Manning (Roger Howarth) can whip this boy into shape before the show ends.
No. 1: Genie Francis, The Young and the Restless
Who would've thought one of daytime's icons would make their triumphant return to the genre, only to ham it up? Genie Francis is a soap legend, who can own a scene with just one look without uttering a single word. When the news broke that Francis would be returning to daytime, fans of the actress were ecstatic they would see her once again. Unfortunately, joy quickly turned to head scratching when it was announced the actress would make her way to The Young and the Restless' Genoa City, instead of returning to her General Hospital roots. Francis' performance as mob moll Genevieve Atkinson and mother of Cane Ashby (Daniel Goddard) was over the top and camptastic. Francis' attempts to disassociate herself from the iconic Laura Vining Webber Baldwin Spencer, by being an unhinged, grief-stricken mother and wife was so outlandish and nonsensical it made viewers grab a Xanax instead of the edge of their seats.
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