After losing some of its residents from the series of tornadoes that recently hit Pine Valley, All My Children will be losing yet another cast member next year.  Rebecca Budig, who plays Greenlee Smythe, has confirmed that she's leaving the ABC soap amidst much controversy.

"It's true," Budig said.  "I'll be leaving All My Children."

Budig originated the role of Greenlee when she joined All My Children on August 11, 1999.  She portrayed the rich girl-turned-makeup company executive until November 30, 2005, during which she earned much accolade from fans and press for her performance on the soap.  She was also nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in 2001 and again in 2003.  After Sabine Singh took over the role from April 20, 2007 to January 15, Budig returned on the show on January 16, which was one of the most widely publicized comebacks in the genre's history.

When asked what prompted Budig to exit All My Children, she explained, “Well, my life is in California [where I relocated after leaving All My Children in 2006].  I had hoped it would be a lot easier than it was to live bi-coastally.  But it's really tough -- our [she and husband Bob Guiney] life is enmeshed there.  We put down roots there."

Budig, who will be participating in the "Rock the Soap" event in March which is part of the Soap Nation 2009 tour, is expected to exit in March 2009.

"I'll be on until early spring.  It's a really, really great exit.  The story is amazing.  Chuck has done some incredibly stuff so far [like the recent tornado]."

"I'm going to miss everyone at All My Children," she added.  “They are seriously the best group of people.  Everyone's there to put on a good show, you know?  It's been so great to be back.  I'm really also thankful for everything Brian [Frons, President ABC Daytime] and Julie [Carruthers, AMC's Executive Producer] have done for me."


-Kris De Leon, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: Soapnet
(Image courtesy of ABC)