In Memoriam: The Young and the Restless star Tristan Rogers Has Died at 79

There have been numerous on-air references to Colin having died on The Young and the Restless as of late. Now, Tristan Rogers, Colin's portrayer, best known to soap fans as Robert Scorpio on General Hospital, has died from lung cancer at the age of 79.

In Memoriam: Tristan Rogers, The Young and the Restless

"Sad to report the passing of soap great Tristan Rogers, who played 'Robert Scorpio' on General Hospital over a period of 45 years," KABC Los Angeles TV reporter, George Pennachio, shared on X, formerly Twitter. "He died of lung cancer this morning [August 15] at the age of 79. His manager says he was never a smoker. May he R.I.P. 🙏."

Rogers, who was born on June 3, 1946, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, made his U.S. soap opera debut in late 1980 as GH's Scorpio, but he also appeared on both The Young and the Restless, as Colin Atkinson, and on The Bold and the Beautiful as Hunter Jones.

The actor's role on General Hospital meant everything to him, Meryl Soodak, Rogers's manager, told KABC-TV: "He loved being Scorpio, and he created that role from nothing. He was supposed to work a day, and he ended up making it into something huge. He was just a genuinely loyal, kind human being, and he loved his family."

A Bold move, Restless style

While Rogers made his mark in Port Charles, he came and went from that show a few times over the decades. In 1997, he joined B&B as Hunter Jones, a private eye, who tried to prove that Ridge (then, Ronn Moss; now, Thorsten Kaye) was innocent of shooting Grant Chambers (Charles Grant). Hunter helped unearth that it was a pre-teen Rick (Steve Hartman) who had pulled the trigger after having watched too many video games.

In 2010, Rogers made his debut as Colin, the ethically-challenged father of Cane (then, Daniel Goddard; now, Billy Flynn), and ex-husband of Genevieve Atkinson (Genie Francis, Laura, GH) on The Young and the Restless. Colin and Jill (Jess Walton) ended up getting married. Rogers played the role for a few years, and Rogers continued to appear sporadically on the top-rated soap until 2019.

Rogers also appeared in the Web series world. He played Commissioner Lex Martin on The Bay, and he portrayed the character of Doc on Studio City. In 2020, the actor won the Daytime Emmy for playing Doc in the category of Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Digital Drama Series.

Last year, GH gave Scorpio a happy ending when he walked off into the sunset with longtime love Holly (Emma Samms). Rogers's last TV appearance was on July 17 when he reprised the part of Scorpio on GH.

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Last November, Rogers received a Star on the Palm Springs Walk of Fame. The actor is survived by his wife, Teresa Parkerson-Rogers, two children, and a grandchild.

Soap Central sends sincere condolences to his family, friends, and fans at this difficult time.

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