Nicholas Alexander Chavez (Spencer Cassadine) might soon be leaving Port Charles -- at least for a while. The actor has landed a high-profile role in the second season of the Netflix anthology series Monster.
According to Deadline, the second season of Ryan Murphy's series will focus on the Menéndez brothers. Chavez is set to play Lyle Menéndez and Cooper Kock will play Erik Menéndez.
Erik and Lyle Menéndez were convicted in 1996 for shooting and killing their parents, José and Mary Louise "Kitty" Menéndez, in their Beverly Hills mansion. Although the brothers confessed to killing their parents, they have long sustained that their actions were brought on by physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. They were both sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The brothers are now seeking to vacate their convictions. Attorneys for the brothers filed court papers last month contending that newly surfaced evidence -- former Menudo bandmember Roy Rosselló's claims that he was molested by José Menendez at the age of fourteen -- warrants a reopening of the case.
The first season of Monster focused on serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.
Koch previously appeared in the first season of the Starz drama Power Book II: Ghost as Chase. He has also appeared in the horror films Swallowed and They/Them.
Chavez, a Daytime Emmy winner for his work on General Hospital, is seen as a fast-rising star. An appearance in a Ryan Murphy project will undoubtedly raise his star profile even higher.
TVLine confirms that Chavez will take "a temporary leave of absence" from GH when production on Monster gets underway. Citing multiple sources, the publication states that GH does not intend to recast the role while Chavez is away.
All of that, of course, the timing of all of this is contingent upon the resolution of the writers' strike. Neither Netflix nor a rep for Ryan Murphy commented on Deadline's story. ABC has declined to comment on Chavez's temporary exit from the show.
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