General Hospital: Willow Stabs Drew — Katelyn MacMullen Talks ‘Exhilarating’ Dark Turn (Exclusive)
The drama certainly hasn’t stopped on General Hospital since the big reveal earlier this month that Congressman Drew Cain (Cameron Mathison) was shot by none other than his seemingly doting wife, Willow (Katelyn MacMullen). Not only did she come away victorious with a not guilty verdict after standing trial for the very crime she committed, but as soon as she and Drew returned home, she stabbed him in the neck with a needle! Soap Opera Digest checked in with MacMullen about the latest dark turn in her character’s trajectory and why it’s so fun to play this unhinged version of Willow.
Take a Stab at It
The actress did not have “Willow injects Drew with a drug that mimics a stroke” on her 2026 bingo card, but that didn’t stop her from enjoying herself to the fullest when it came time to film the outrageous act. “We just had a blast to be honest,” MacMullen giggles. “It’s a stunt, technically, and anytime there’s a stut, there’s so much that goes into it — it’s all coordinated and planned. And to actually live through it was so fun. Cameron [Mathison] and I were laughing and having the best time, and we had Frank [Valentini, executive producer] on set, giving great notes. It was one of those scenes where you’re just like, ‘Okay, we’re doing this! Let’s do it!'”
She found out about the stabbing twist around the same time that she was told that Willow shot Drew. “It was before we shot the trial,” she recalls. “I think someone was like, ‘She stabs him in two weeks,’ or something like that [laughs]. So I knew I’d have a lot of fun stuff coming up! I was like, ‘Okay, great!'” As for whether Willow was trying to actually do away with her husband this time around, MacMullen offers, “At first, I thought she was doing it to try to kill him, but now I think she was probably doing it more so to incapacitate him.”
Whatever Willow’s long-term goal is in sidelining her rotten spouse, it hinges on her short-term ability to make those in her orbit — from her mom, Nina (Cynthia Watros), to her buddy/co-worker/former housemate Liz (Rebecca Herbst) — believe that she is positively devastated to think that her husband could end up in a vegetative state as a result of his “stroke.” And on the Wednesday, January 21 episode, she delivered quite the performance in the role of the distraught wife.
MacMullen notes, “Those scenes were interesting because it really is Willow putting on an acting job and needing to convince the world that he’s had a stroke so that she can, you know, keep him where she needs him! It was interesting to think about, ‘How good of an actor is this character?’ It was really fun to play, like, ‘Okay, she’s really putting on a performance right now and she has this secret, but she has to convince herself and the world at large that she’s devastated over this.'”
Naughty Nurse
Speaking of acting, many GH fans are loving this darker version of Willow and how MacMullen is playing it — and after seven years in the role, the saga is certainly pushing the actress out of her comfort zone with the character. “It’s exhilarating,” she says of getting to delve into these new dimensions of Willow. “It’s also a little bit daunting! I’m so used to her psychology kind of working one way, but now, getting to explore [this material] I actually feel more connected to the character, in a weird way, because I’m getting to see all sides of her, like how she responds in these extreme situations. It has surprised me, but it has definitely been so fun to play!”
Once the audience was in on Willow’s secret, MacMullen had greater license to explicitly play Willow’s disdain for Drew (behind his back, of course), and her smirks have been a hit on social media. MacMullen says that she, too, sees the elements of black comedy in the storyline. “I do find humor in it sometimes, because the situation is quite intense,” she nods. “I’m glad there is some humor along with the craziness!”
And the craziness won’t soon let up, as the actress assures that this week’s shocking stabbing is only one of the twists fans can expect as the storyline continues to unfold. “The writers are doing an amazing job,” MacMullen praises. “Even I get scripts and I’m like, ‘Oh, my gosh, I never would have thought of that!’ There are a lot more surprises coming.”
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