interview maurice benard sonny general hospital
Credit: Image: Howard Wise/JPI

General Hospital actor takes on a new role.

Soap opera fans know and love Maurice Benard (General Hospital, Sonny) for his tough guy role on the show, but on Monday June 8 he posted a video showing just how tender he could be, giving a speech at his daughter’s Zoom wedding. In a video posted on Instagram, Benard stands between his bride daughter Cailey, 25, and groom Carlos, and gives a speech…

During the three-minute video, he speaks fondly about what Cailey was like from the start – lots of hair, “stunning” with “big brown eyes” and “beautiful skin,” but also stubborn and intelligent. “She was a mama’s girl,” he noted. But though we don’t get to see any vows in the video, there’s more going on here, based on Benard’s caption for the video: “Never in my life did I think I would marry anyone, especially not one of my daughters. Marrying Cailey and Carlos was an honor and a privilege not to mention very very sweet.”

Benard’s speech – which hilariously gets interrupted by Cailey’s watch buzzing – also refers to the groom, Carlos, and how he joined the clan. “We thought he was weird because he didn’t talk for like, ever,” says the actor in the video. “I told Cailey, ‘What’s up with Carlos?’ She goes, ‘You’ve got to get to know him.’ I said, ‘Honey, it’s like six months.’ Then one day he started opening up and we started to figure out who the true Carlos was inside.”

More: Maurice Benard opens up about memoir, being bipolar

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard of Carlos and Cailey from Benard; in 2016 he shared a photo of the couple on Twitter, wishing Carlos a happy birthday. “My daughter couldn’t [have] found a better MAN we’re all lucky to have you in our lives,” he wrote. That’s one proud papa! But Benard is also an actor at heart – at the end of his speech, he made sure to tell his audience, “You can clap, people.”

Cailey is Benard’s eldest daughter; he and wife Paula also have Cassidy, 21, and Joshua, 15. They are the adoptive parents of Heather Ann, the daughter of Paula’s sister, who joined them in 2008. We send applause and congratulations to the whole Benard clan!

More: Maurice Benard becomes best-selling author

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