Robert Palmer Watkins has quickly garnered the support of "General Hospital" fans after news the show fired him spread like wildfire. He joined the show in 2015, and most recently was killing it as part of the fan-favorite pairing, "Killon." Kiki (Hayley Erin) and Dillon had a lot of potential, and now, it is done. Seeing the outrage fans have for what has happened to Watkins isn't surprising given the way things have gone on the show for the last few months.
Casting news changes everything
"General Hospital" has been making a lot of changes in recent weeks.
It all started with contract negotiations between Roger Howarth and William deVry back in May. Just this past week, Howarth returned from a hiatus while he was working out a deal and DeVry finally signed a three-year deal just a few days ago. Rebecca Budig was let go earlier this summer and finished airing this week. Steve Burton's return was announced, which gave way to rumors of budget cuts to get him the salary he wanted. Then, another one was let go. According to Soap Opera Network, Robert Palmer Watkins was fired from "General Hospital" at some point this week. Fans were already upset, but this took the cake.
Since the news broke of Robert Palmer Watkins being fired, he has released a statement to his fans.
He took to social media to thank fans for their support and was even gracious enough to thank "General Hospital" staff for giving him the opportunity to play Dillon Quartermaine. That was a pretty gracious statement considering they fired him while he was out for a few weeks filming a movie.
Petition to keep Robert Palmer Watkins
Fans have decided to take matters into their own hands and start a petition to keep Robert Palmer Watkins on "General Hospital." Soap fans have been victorious before with the firing reversal of Rebecca Herbst and the push to get William deVry to sign a decent deal with the show. There is a petition circulating on Facebook and Twitter that fans are signing for Watkins.
Right now, it is getting noticed, which is a good sign.
Another Quartermaine leaving Port Charles is not good news. The changes that "General Hospital" executives have chosen to make could have some serious effects on the ratings come November sweeps. The loss of two characters fans enjoyed isn't going over well, especially with news that they have added another female character to the cast. Sometimes change isn't always a good thing.
