Susan Lucci Finally Tells All: You Won’t Believe What She Did After Witnessing Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos’ Steamy, Shirtless ‘All My Children’ Audition That Changed Everything
Susan Lucci Finally Tells All: You Won’t Believe What She Did After Witnessing Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos’ Steamy, Shirtless ‘All My Children’ Audition That Changed Everything
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HOLLYWOOD BOMBSHELL: Susan Lucci Reveals What Really Happened During THAT Legendary ‘All My Children’ Audition with Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos
It’s a soap opera tale so juicy, even Erica Kane herself would be jealous. Susan Lucci, the legendary queen of daytime drama and Emmy-winning star of All My Children, has just dropped a bombshell revelation about the moment that changed soap opera history forever: the now-iconic audition of Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos.
Appearing on a recent podcast with her signature glam and an unmistakable glint of mischief in her eyes, Lucci opened up about the steamy audition that not only launched one of daytime’s hottest on-screen couples — but also ignited a real-life romance that would captivate America for decades.
But her reaction? Let’s just say, the queen of soaps was not ready for what she saw.
“OH MY GOD, IS THIS ALLOWED ON DAYTIME TV?!”
According to Lucci, she had only dropped by the audition room that day “out of curiosity.” What she stumbled into, however, was something far steamier than she ever expected.
“There they were — Kelly and Mark — and let me tell you, the chemistry was practically combusting. It wasn’t just sparks. It was a five-alarm fire,” Lucci laughed. “I thought I had walked onto the set of Red Shoe Diaries, not All My Children!”
She went on to describe the now infamous moment when a shirtless Mark Consuelos swept a blushing Kelly Ripa into his arms and delivered his lines with a smolder that would’ve melted steel.
“I nearly dropped my coffee,” Lucci confessed. “I turned to the casting director and whispered, ‘Are we allowed to air this in the afternoon? My mother still watches this show!’”
THE CHEMISTRY THAT COULDN’T BE DENIED
Fans of the long-running ABC soap know that Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos joined All My Children in the mid-1990s, portraying Hayley Vaughan and Mateo Santos. But what they may not know is how electric — and unpredictable — their first screen test together truly was.
“They weren’t even supposed to read together that day,” Lucci revealed. “It was a last-minute pairing, and nobody knew what would happen. But from the first glance — it was magic.”
Magic, indeed. Not only did their characters become one of the show’s most beloved couples, but Kelly and Mark fell in love off-screen, secretly eloping in 1996 and becoming the ultimate daytime power duo.
But according to Lucci, it almost didn’t happen — because their chemistry almost made execs nervous.
“I heard rumblings that it was ‘too much’ for daytime,” she said with a grin. “But thankfully, the producers were smart enough to realize what they had. They didn’t just cast actors — they cast a phenomenon.”
“I WANTED TO FAN MYSELF”: LUCCI’S UNFILTERED REACTION
In perhaps the most unexpected moment of her story, Lucci admitted that after witnessing the steamy audition, she stepped outside the casting room and “literally fanned herself with the script pages.”
“I told my assistant, ‘We’re either witnessing the start of a beautiful love story… or we’re going to get sued for emotional distress!’”
She then quipped: “Either way, I was not going to miss a single scene once those two got cast.”
KELLY AND MARK REACT TO LUCCI’S COMMENTS
In a recent interview on Live with Kelly and Mark, the dynamic duo was played a clip of Lucci’s recollection. Their reaction? Absolute delight.
“Oh my God, I love her!” Kelly Ripa laughed. “If I had known Susan Lucci was standing behind the door watching us, I probably would’ve fainted!”
Mark Consuelos added, “That audition changed our lives. And to know Susan remembers it so vividly? That means the world.”
The couple, now married for nearly 30 years, credits All My Children for everything — their careers, their marriage, and the start of their family.
But even they admit: “That audition… yeah, it was a little intense.”
A LEGACY THAT STILL BURNS
While All My Children officially ended its original run in 2011, the stories — and scandals — it spawned live on. And thanks to moments like the one Susan Lucci just brought back into the spotlight, its legacy remains as fiery as ever.
“I’ve done thousands of episodes,” Lucci said, “but that audition? I’ll never forget it. It was like watching two stars being born right in front of me.”
She also hinted — in her trademark teasing tone — that there may be more behind-the-scenes stories she’s finally ready to share.
“Let’s just say Kelly and Mark weren’t the only ones heating up the set in those days,” she said with a wink. “Stay tuned.”
FANS EXPLODE ON SOCIAL MEDIA
As soon as Lucci’s comments hit the airwaves, fans flooded social media with reactions.
“OMG I need that audition tape RIGHT NOW,” one fan tweeted.
“Can someone PLEASE do a dramatic reenactment of Susan Lucci watching that audition?” another posted.
Even Netflix chimed in, jokingly asking, “Do we need to option this moment for a limited series?”
HOLLYWOOD LOVES A GOOD LOVE STORY — AND THIS ONE’S THE REAL DEAL
In a world where celebrity couples often burn bright and fade fast, Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos have become the rare exception — enduring, passionate, and still madly in love.
And now, thanks to Susan Lucci’s juicy revelation, fans have even more reason to swoon.
Because behind every iconic love story… there’s always one person who saw it first.
And for this one?
That person was Erica Kane herself.
👑 THE LEGEND LIVES ON
Whether you were a die-hard fan of All My Children, or just love a steamy Hollywood origin story, Susan Lucci’s hilarious — and honest — peek behind the curtain is a delicious reminder that sometimes… the best drama happens before the cameras start rolling.
So next time you see Kelly and Mark hosting their talk show, remember: their fairy tale started with a shirtless audition, a shocked soap legend, and a love story hotter than any daytime script could’ve written.
And Susan Lucci? She was there for all of it.
And she’s just getting started.
