EXCLUSIVE: General Hospital-Alexa Havins On Lulu’s Reunion With Maxie; What is the reason to find Charlotte?
Not Without My Daughter: Lulu (Alexa Havins) is single-minded in her quest to find Charlotte.
Lulu’s General Hospital life has been filled with one shock after another after she emerged from her four-year coma to discover (among other things) that her son, Rocco, was now a teenager, her father, Luke, was dead, her ex-husband, Dante, had been in a long-term relationship with Sam, and that Sam was dead after donating part of her liver to Lulu. As if that wasn’t enough, she then found out that her daughter, Charlotte, was missing, having slipped out of town with her father, Valentin — and now Lulu is determined to find her.
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On the Wednesday, December 11 episode, that urgent mission colored her reunion with her best friend, Maxie. Says Alexa Havins (Lulu), “I think there is so much that can be done and will be done in Lulu’s relationship with Maxie, and with me working with Kirsten [Storms, Maxie]. But this first beat of them seeing each other and being together is so much more about, ‘So much has changed [since Lulu went into her coma]. Things have moved on. Things are different.’ So to be able to jump right in and have that fun relationship [that Lulu and Maxie were known for] … I don’t think she’s mentally quite there yet. She’s still processing everything, and her mind is so focused on her children. Their first interaction is more, ‘I love you, I’m so sorry I haven’t made it over to see you, I’m just so distracted, my priority is my child who is missing!’ It’s probably a little heavier between them than the audience is used to, but it’s understandable, given where Lulu is coming from.” After all, with the gravity of everything Lulu is reckoning with, “I didn’t want it to be like all of a sudden, Lulu was a giddy teenager. Things are heavier. There’s a lot at stake.”
Havins is, of course, greatly looking forward to further developing the Lulu/Maxie dynamic alongside Storms. “I knew who Kirsten was before [joining the show] and I’m so excited to work with her. Kirsten and I were talking and I was like, ‘Oh, this is going to be very fun!’ She was saying how she likes comedy and a good beat and I was like, ‘Oh, I love comedy!’ It’s just not quite right yet [for the characters, given Lulu’s current frame of mind]. We will hopefully get there, and get back to that magic between the friends. I really am excited about where the relationship can go because I’ve heard so many good things about their friendship and the fun they’ve had, the nonsense they’ve gotten into.”
But, emphasizes Havins, “Lulu’s priority right now is her children and reconnecting with her kids. So the throughline is, ‘Where is Charlotte? Rocco is here, Rocco is safe. Where is my daughter?!’ And I like that they gave her something that moves her forward, versus her sitting there wallowing in her own [self-pity]: ‘Oh, boo-hoo, I lost four years.’ I think that would be a disservice; that wouldn’t be Lulu! She has too much strength. It’s like, ‘Yeah, knock me down, I’ll get back up, knock me down again and I’m just gonna keep standing.’ I really want her to still have that heart, and to show all of her emotions and feelings, while still playing, ‘Get out of my way, I’m going to find my child.’ “
