When Judy Blye Wilson became the casting director for All My Children in 1991, the long-running soap was on the verge of a new era that would soon include one of its most memorable real-life love stories.
“That’s when Kelly Ripa came in (as Hayley Vaughan),” Wilson recalls. “And I can’t really take credit for it because she was cast by Joan D’Incecco (the previous casting director) and by that group prior to my getting there. But I definitely had a lot to do with Mark Consuelos (getting hired as Mateo Santos) and that’s an understatement.”
In 1994, the soap was seeking the perfect actor to play a love interest for Ripa. “They wanted it to be a Latino or Hispanic young man,” Wilson recalls. “He needed to be young and drop-dead gorgeous. So, I started a big search, because it wasn’t very easy at the time.”
Kelly Ripa, Mark Consuelos – ‘All My Children’
American Broadcasting Company /Courtesy Everett Collection
One of the first budding stars to catch her eye was Mark Consuelos. “He was out of Florida, not local,” she explains. “I noticed that he had gone to Notre Dame and graduated fairly recently.”
Soon after, Ripa stopped by Wilson’s office and spotted the photo of Consuelos. “The picture was on the desk of Mark, and she picked it up and fell in love for the rest of her life,” Wilson relays. “It happened right there. She flipped out over his picture. And it was just an 8-by-10 headshot.”
Wilson brought Consuelos in to read for Mateo, but it wasn’t an immediate yes, which became a challenge because the character was already written into scripts. “The network wasn’t sure,” she reveals. “They were a little shaky. So, we tested him again with other people, and then it just got to be out of control. Nobody was sure, and everybody was unsure, and then they said, ‘We can’t push it back any further. We have to start this role.’”
Consuelos began filming, but still wasn’t guaranteed the part. “He started playing the role of Mateo, and he had to screen test while he was playing the role with other guys, which was unheard of and phenomenal,” Wilson details. “Finally, they gave him the role, and he and Kelly fell in love immediately. The rest, I think, is history. So, that was a unique story because I don’t know of anyone that ever played a role while they were still screen-testing with other candidates trying to get the role.”
Ripa and Consuelos’ union proved fruitful. After eloping in Las Vegas on May 1, 1996, they welcomed three children — Michael, 28, Lola, 24, and Joaquin, 22. The duo left the soap in 2002 but returned in January 2010 to mark its 40th anniversary. Ripa began officially cohosting Live With Regis and Kelly in February 2001. After 22 years of filling in as Ripa’s cohost, Consuelos joined her permanently in 2023.
Kelly Ripa, Michael Consuelos, Lola Consuelos, Mark Consuelos, and Joaquin Consuelos, Instagram, December 2022.
Courtesy of Kelly Ripa/Instagram
That their relationship, which took hold on the set, has remained strong is a source of delight for Wilson. “It’s a phenomenal story,” she points out. “Not only were they truly attracted to each other, there was something rather cosmic that went on. She was drawn to his picture, and they were drawn to each other physically, spiritually, and every other way. You can say that it was just meant to be, and it’s worked out very well.”
Wilson will be recognized as a “Silver Circle” honoree for her successful casting career at the 52nd Annual Daytime Emmy Awards, streaming live on October 17 and available to watch at watch.theemmys.tv and via The Emmys app.
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