General Hospital‘s Ingo Rademacher has left the building. After being fired for opposing the show’s recently imposed COVID-19 vaccination mandate (per Yahoo Entertainment), the longtime star’s final episode aired on Monday, November 22. Rademacher has played Jasper “Jax” Jacks on the ABC soap opera on and off since 1996.
During Monday’s episode, Jax bumped into his ex-wife Carly (played by Laura Wright) and announced his plans to leave Port Charles to handle things in his native Australia. He added that he had no plans to return for the holidays, and that his exit was probably for the best. “I’m kind of on the outs with everyone in Port Charles right now,” Jax said.
The same could be said about Rademacher, who has long been outspoken in his stance against vaccines. “Getting vaccinated does not stop you from spreading the virus. That’s straight from the CDC,” he wrote on Instagram in August. “Mandating any vaccine is wrong but especially one that doesn’t help stop the spread, that’s nothing short of crazy talk.”
The actor’s firing also came days after he clashed with some of his costars over his comments about the transgender community. Earlier this month, Rademacher reshared a tweet that misgendered Rachel Levine (who’s transgender and an admiral of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps).
Rademacher’s former castmate Nancy Lee Grahn first confirmed his firing in a tweet responding to his post. “The fellow actor, #IngoRademacher, is mercifully no longer part of the #gh cast,” she tweeted on November 8. “Transphobia & misgendering are disgusting and should be unacceptable in any industry, including soaps/acting.”
Where to watch General Hospital