Réal Andrews (born Réal Johnson; January 31, 1963)[1][2] is a Canadian actor. He is known for playing Chance Walker in the first season of the syndicated action drama series Soldier of Fortune, Inc., and for playing Marcus Taggert on the ABC daytime soap opera General Hospital since 1996.
Réal Andrews | |
|---|---|
| Born | Réal Johnson January 31, 1963 North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1981–present |
| Spouse |
Michele Viscasso (m. 2000) |
| Children | 3 |
Early life and education
editBorn Réal Johnson, Andrews was raised in Vancouver, British Columbia by a single mother. Andrews did not have a relationship with his biological father, a musician who abandoned Andrews and his mother when he was only a few years old. Andrews only met his birth father one time while in college.[2] When Andrews was 21 years old, his mother Troy married Cyril Nathan Andrews, who adopted Reál as his own.[2][3] Andrews was raised as a Catholic and attended an all boys private school.[4] Growing up, Andrews wasn't interested in acting at all and described himself as a jock. Andrews was first exposed to acting when his aunt invited him to a seminar at her acting school. In 1981, the 18 year Andrews relocated to Toronto, Canada for college where found work in the entertainment industry.[2]
Career
editAndrews started his career in 1981 as a stuntman, becoming one of the first Black stunt men in Canada.[2] While he had a long list of credits, Andrews had been working as a struggling actor for years by the time he booked General Hospital in late 1996. Marcus Taggert which originally was an "under-five" role which would help launch Andrews career. From 1997 to 1999, Andrews would also star in the Dan Gordon created series, Soldier of Fortune, Inc..[4] He would leave the role of Taggert for a few months in 1997 only to return by year's end. In 2003, Andrews chose not to renew his contract with General Hospital and Taggert was written in May 2003.[5] Andrews quickly joined the cast of CBS Daytime's As the World Turns as Walker Daniels in 2003.[6] Only a year later, Andrews was let go from the series.[7] In 2010, Andrews joined the cast of the web series, The Bay as Dr. Keith Campbell.[8] In 2015, Andrews joined the cast of Days of Our Lives in a recurring role.[9] In 2020, Andrews made an unannounced return to General Hospital as Taggert on January 17, 2020.[10] In October 2024, he announced he had concluded his time at General Hospital and revealed he had a new, undisclosed project he was signed to.[11]
Personal life
editOn November 4, 2000, Andrews married Michele Viscasso.[1] They have three children together.[3][12]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Iceman | Lab tech | |
| 1984 | Listen to the City | Green | |
| 1986 | Busted Up | Auditioning fighter | |
| 1987 | Wild Thing | Raul | |
| 1987 | Nowhere to Hide | Luther | |
| 1987 | City of Shadows | Thug in Diner | |
| 1987 | Last Man Standing | Razor | |
| 1988 | Night Friend | Myles | |
| 1989 | Food of the Gods II | Mark | |
| 1989 | Born on the Fourth of July | Vet #3 | |
| 1989 | Renegades | Cop | |
| 1994 | Final Round | Carlos | Direct-to-video film |
| 2006 | Movin' Too Fast | Detective #2 |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Glitter Dome | Cooley | Television film |
| 1985 | Night Heat | 4 roles | 4 episodes |
| 1986 | In This Corner | Fighter #2 | Television film |
| 1987 | CBS Schoolbreak Special | Gordon | Episode: "The Day They Came to Arrest the Book" |
| 1987 | 21 Jump Street | Drug dealer | Episode: "Besieged: Part 1" |
| 1988 | China Beach | Patient #3 | Episode: "Waiting for Beckett" |
| 1989 | Street Legal | Wendell Walker | Episode: "Basketball Story" |
| 1989 | Friday the 13th: The Series | Deacon | Episode: "Night Hunger" |
| 1989 | Hard Time on Planet Earth | Deacon Powell | Episode: "All That You Can Be" |
| 1989 | C.B.C.'s Magic Hour | Tommy Mills | Episode: "The Fighter" |
| 1989 | E.N.G. | Roy | Episode: "Pilot: Parts 1 & Part 2" |
| 1990 | War of the Worlds | Man in Bar | Episode: "Synthetic Love" |
| 1992 | Catwalk | Tyrone | Episode: "Life's Not Black 'n White" |
| 1993 | Night Owl | Ivan | Television film |
| 1995 | Days of Our Lives | Robert Parry | Guest role |
| 1996–2003, 2020–2023 |
General Hospital | Marcus Taggert | Series regular: 1996–2003; recurring role: 2020–2023 |
| 1998 | Port Charles | Marcus Taggert | Recurring role |
| 1997 | Soldier of Fortune, Inc. | Chance Walker | Main role (season 1) |
| 2003 | As the World Turns | Walker Daniels | Recurring role |
| 2005, 2009 | Law & Order: Special Victims Unit | Sergeant Ray Crawford / Army Recruiter | Episodes: "Blood", "Turmoil" |
| 2006 | Law & Order | Deon | Episode: "Release" |
| 2010 | The Bay | Keith Campbell | Recurring role |
| 2016–2017 | Days of Our Lives | Hal Michaels | Recurring role: May 12, 2016 to March 9, 2017 |
References
edit- ^ a b Levinsky, Mara (March 2, 2020). "Truly Andrews". Soap Opera Digest. 45 (9). American Media, Inc.: 42–45.
- ^ a b c d e Jacobs, Damon L. (January 10, 2011). "THE BAY Series Interviews - Real Andrews Part One". We Love Soaps. p. 1. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
- ^ a b "Cyril Andrews Obituary - West Vancouver, BC". Legacy.com. October 24, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
- ^ a b Jacobs, Damon L. (January 12, 2011). "THE BAY Series Interviews - Real Andrews Part Two". We Love Soaps. p. 2. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
- ^ Kroll, Dan J. (February 7, 2003). "Andrews to leave role as Taggert". Soapcentral.com. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
- ^ Kroll, Dan J (May 6, 2003). "ATWT Snares Another Former ABC Soap Star". Soap Central. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
- ^ "Andrews ATWT stint is Réally over". Soap Central. September 1, 2004. Retrieved September 3, 2021.
- ^ Giddens, Jamey (October 28, 2010). "Days of Our Lives Alum Charles Shaughnessy and General Hospital Vet Real Andrews Make Their Bay Debuts!". Daytime Confidential. United States: Confidential Media, Inc. (SAY Media). Retrieved September 5, 2021.
- ^ White-Nobles, Ryan (November 10, 2015). "'DAYS' Casting News: Brandon Beemer Returning as Shawn; 'GH' Alum Cast". TV Source Magazine. United States: SoSource Media, LLC. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
- ^ Clifford, Kambra (January 16, 2020). "Réal Andrews returns as General Hospital detective Marcus Taggert". Soap Central. United States. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
- ^ Brounstein, Diane (October 15, 2024). "Réal Andrews: 'My Chapter With General Hospital is Over'". Soap Opera Digest. United States: A360media. ISSN 0164-3584. Retrieved October 16, 2024.
- ^ "Réal Andrews". About the Actors. Soap Central. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
External links
edit- Réal Andrews at IMDb