Sonya Eddy, ‘General Hospital’ Actress, Dead at 55

Sonya Eddy, who played nurse Epiphany Johnson in General Hospital for over 15 years, has died. She was 55. Eddy’s friend Octavia Spencer, who starred in Seven Pounds and Coach Carter with the actress, shared the sad news on Tuesday.

“My friend [Eddy] passed away last night,” Spencer wrote. “The world lost another creative angel. Her legions of [General Hospital] fans will miss her… My thoughts and prayers are with her loved ones, friends, and fans!” A cause of death has not been released.

Eddy began playing Epiphany Johnson on General Hospital in 2006 and was with the daytime soap opera until her death. She appeared in over 500 episodes as the head nurse. She also appeared in the spinoff General Hospital: Night Shift. Epiphany has overcome several losses during her tenure at the Port Charles hospital, including the death of her son Stan in 2008.

Eddy was born on July 17, 1967, in Concord, California. She began acting on stage, appearing in a 1990 production of Ruby Dee’s Zora is My Name. She made her television debut in 1995 when she appeared in episodes of The Drew Carey Show and Married… With Children. Eddy often played nurses and rarely appeared in more than one episode of a series until she was cast in General Hospital. While still starring in GH, she picked up recurring parts in Jim Jeffries’ FX series Legit and the Adult Swim sitcom Black Jesus. She had roles in episodes of 2 Broke Girls, Mike & Molly, The Middle, Girl Meets World, Castle, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Glee, CSI, House, ER, Reba, and Seinfeld.

Eddy also had roles in countless movies. She can be seen in Patch Adams, Inspector Gadget, Barbershop, Matchstick Men, Year of the Dog, The Perfect Game, The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, and Pee-Wee’s Big Holiday. This year, she starred in Frank and Penelope and V/H/S/99.

Spencer’s Instagram post is full of fans and colleagues offering their condolences. “Nooooooo,” Holly Robinson Peete wrote, adding three crying emojis. “I am so sad to hear this. Sending you love,” Nina Parker wrote. “Sending love to you,” Jamie Alexander added. “My heart and prayer go out to her family and friends and her GH cast,” a fan wrote. “General Hospital won’t be the same without her,” another commented. “She was a beautiful woman inside and out.”