On Sunday, August 10th, Rory Gibson’s “State of Mind” episode premiered on Maurice Benard’s YouTube channel.
Presently, he plays the role of Michael Corinthos on the ABC daytime drama “General Hospital,” and ever since he took on the role, Gibson became an instant favorite with the fans.
Gibson on family life and mental health
Gibson spoke about his family life, his parents’ divorce, and shared that he has three half-siblings and that he enjoys Muay Thai boxing.
Gibson was candid about his stepfather and how he used to hang out with the wrong crowd, and opened up about mental health and growing up with fear and some anxiety.
A mental health advocate, Maurice Benard furnished the definitions of anxiety and depression. Benard himself has suffered from debilitating anxiety all his life (with three manic episodes and even being put in a mental hospital for a short time).
Gibson on his desire to give acting a chance
Gibson shared that he became a fitness instructor at Barry’s in Los Angeles, and how he got into acting (with the help of Alicia, his then model girlfriend, who is now his fiancée.
Gibson noted that after being let go from “The Young and The Restless,” he was trying to figure out things. He was broke for a time being and he even couch-surfed for a while.
“The last five years, there were a lot of big ups but also many low lows,” Gibson said. “We lost a lot of people and we lost dogs and it was weird time,” he admitted in the podcast.
The silver lining: landing the role of Michael Corinthos on ‘General Hospital’
For all the difficulties that he had to endure, Benard acknowledged that landing the role of Michael on “General Hospital” was his “reward.”
“The beauty of that is that you’ll never go through that again,” Benard expressed. “I know ‘General Hospital.’ I’ve been there more than most people. I know when you came in and what has happened,” he said.
“You may not want to do ‘General Hospital’ after a while, but it will always be there for you now. That’s the way I feel,” Benard said.
In return, Gibson revealed that he feels “extremely fulfilled” in this job of playing Michael on “General Hospital”
“I’m having an incredible time. I love everyone that I am working with and I love the stories that are being thrown my way, and I feel challenged and excited,” Gibson said.
“I love Y&R but it wasn’t a fit,” Benard said, prior to shifting the conversation to dessert!
Gibson reveals that he has a sweet tooth
When asked by Bernard about his love for sweets, Gibson disclosed his love for doughnuts. “I have this eternal inner battle going on with my childhood self,” he said. “I was a chunky little boy and I was a doughnut fiend… I would kill a dozen by myself, easy. That’s what thrusted me into fitness… just being an insecure, thick boy.”
Their entire informed conversation may be seen below:
The Verdict
Overall, this “State of Mind” episode felt like a compelling therapy session where Rory Gibson was not afraid to be raw and vulnerable with Maurice Benard.
In fact, he was an open book, and this episode will certainly be well-received with “General Hospital” fans, most of which have praised Gibson as one of their “favorite recasts” in the show’s 60-year history.
To learn more about Rory Gibson, follow him on Instagram.
