Confirmed! Grayson McCouch, Anthony Herrera Return to ATWT!!

After several weeks of rumors buzzing around the Internet, Soaps.com has confirmed that two very big stars are about to make their Oakdale return! An As The World Turns spokesperson has confirmed that Grayson McCouch (Dusty Donovan) and Anthony Herrera (James Stenbeck) will return very soon!

Anthony Herrera has been a regular in and around Oakdale since he originated the character of James Stenbeck in the 1980s. Stenbeck is Oakdale’s super villain who comes along to wreak havoc every few years. This time around, Stenback’s focus in on his son, Paul, who recently inherited a fortune (not that he needed more money!) from comatose ex-wife Rosanna. He’s been living at Fairwinds since Rosanna lost consciousness last winter and just married Meg Snyder.

Meg, by the way, has been acting very strangely along with several other members of Oakdale society. Alison and Emily Stewart, Chris Hughes and Meg have all suffered from trance-like states when they weren’t in control of their faculties. Last week, Alison apparently tried to commit suicide but Chris saved her. Emily married Casey and when she came to had no idea what he had done and Chris was suddenly overcome with a feeling of claustrophobia and itchiness – and stripped naked in the hospital on-call room! All of the victims began acting strangely after receiving gifts from a friend or family member; Meg’s gift was actually sent to Barbara who loaned it to her for her wedding.

So far no one has connected any of the cases, but with James Stenbeck coming back to town, could it be that he's already begun his next cycle of madness is town?

Anthony Herrera's first airdate is set for August 27, 2008. So far we have not heard how long James Stenbeck will be in town. Herrera did ask for a special shooting schedule because of his past bone marrow transplants. It could be this will also be a short stint - but we hope he's going to be around for the long haul!

Meanwhile, Grayson McCouch was last seen when Dusty was presumed dead after being injected by Evan Walsh IV! Several people were accused of his murder including Emily, Lily and Holden. Dusty's death also impacted Alison because he left her enough money to go on to nursing school. Alison was kicked out of the program and soon after her return to school received a bracelet, supposedly from her father. Is the gift actually from Dusty or James?

How will the show explain Dusty's un-death? We haven't been able to confirm his entire storyline but understand that his return from the dead is directly linked to James Stenbeck's return! Dusty's reappearance in Oakdale will have a huge impact on at least two leading ladies - Emily and Lily. What does that mean for Emily's and Lily's leading men - Casey and Holden? We will have to wait and see!

GraysonMcCouch's first airdate is set for September 24, 2008.

Soaps.com welcomes back both of these talented actors! We can't wait to see what you both have in store for Oakdale!