Maurice Benard seemed genuinely moved when he took the stage to accept his second Daytime Emmy. At one point, the actor covered his face with his hands and took a deep breath. The reason for Benard's emotions?
"Well, you know, it was very tough competition. Everywhere I was reading... they said I had no shot," Benard said matter-of-factly. "So, I really didn't think I had a shot. And the competition was [strong]: Peter Bergman, Billy Flynn, Tyler Christopher, and Jon Lindstrom. I just said, 'All right,' [and] I didn't even prepare a speech or anything -- and that's a mistake! Because when you get called, and you don't think you're going to get it, you get shocked, and then you don't have a speech, so double whammo."
Much of Benard's storyline was tied to that of his on-screen father, played by Max Gail, who won the Supporting Actor trophy.
"I haven't seen [Max] since I won. I don't think I have ever done a story where, let me put it to you this way: they would dress him in a hat and jacket and when I would touch his jacket, it was my dad's jacket -- identical color, texture... his hat was the same," Benard shared. "It was like my dad was on the set, and I've never been in an acting situation like that. One time, I did a scene where he had to go to a facility, and I started crying like a baby."
Asked how this win compared to his first win in 2003, Benard said, "I don't think anything can compare to the first time, and that night was so big. This was really sweet in another way. This one... the shock is amazing. Scary, but amazing scary. But nothing is like the first."
Benard's win is General Hospital's eleventh win in the Lead Actor category. Eight of those wins went to Tony Geary (ex-Luke Spencer).
2019 has been a "spectacular year" for Jacqueline MacInnes Wood.
"It's been incredible. The award, I had a baby. Yes, it's been a really, really good year," the actress beamed backstage after receiving her award.
This is Jacqueline MacInnes Wood's first Daytime Emmy win -- and this was her first nomination as Lead Actress. Last year, Wood was nominated as Supporting Actress -- her first nomination in that category. She had been nominated two other times in the Younger Actress category.
What did Wood think when she heard her name read as the winner? A lot of things.
"There [are] so many things that go through my mind, but like... putting all those words together, knowing I have to thank all these people and not forget anybody... it's one of those pinch me moments. I am so, so grateful. It's a wonderful feeling," Wood said.
Wood's reel ran the gamut of emotions (you can learn more about her reel here), and she called the material "extremely challenging."
"I felt as an actor I accessed all these emotions, and I didn't even know I could get there so quickly, because you know, we do film 80 pages a day and there are really tough, tough scenes, and you want to as present as possible and be there for your partner and be there for your cast. You want these things to be real," Wood explained. "I think the story was [real] for me; it wasn't fake tears. I was really putting myself in those scenes... It was cathartic. It was kind of like therapy, not only were you crying, but it was months and month and months of it. Like I said, I really challenge myself, and, yeah, I guess I am here now, so it was worth it."
Wood becomes the third actress from The Bold and the Beautiful to win in the Lead Actress category. The two other winners are Susan Flannery (ex-Stephanie Forrester) and Heather Tom (Katie Logan), who was also nominated this year.
