Almost a year after Johnny Wactor was murdered, his friend Anita Joy still feels the loss and misses her friend terribly.
It was a sad day for General Hospital fans in May 2024 when alum Johnny Wactor was tragically killed when he caught hoodlums trying to steal his catalytic converter. It was the wee hours of the morning, and Wactor was escorting his co-worker Anita Joy to her car for safety. When he saw the men messing with his truck, he asked if they were towing it, and one of the thieves shot him to death. Nearly a year later, Joy took to social media to honor her friend who shielded her from the gunfire.
The Tragedy Weighs On Her Daily
Sharing a picture of Wactor with his eyes and forehead in color while the bottom half of his face was in black and white on Instagram, Anita Joy captioned it with a long passage that reads like a poem. “…As time goes on, This reality doesn’t change,” she began, continuing, “It gets more difficult, Often strange, Sometimes the sun shines for a bit…Just time enough to remember how to smile. Then it retreats again, Right back to the unforgivable tragedy.”
She continued by explaining that relationships come and go, and things change daily. Joy went on to explain that people couldn’t understand or imagine the surreal feeling she has. She noted, “My life is altered yet I keep living. There’s been recognition for you that you were supposed to be here to receive. The kind that is only given now in your memory.”
He’s Being Honored
Joy continued her heartbreaking narrative by explaining that everything is no longer the same for her and his not being there still affects her, sometimes becoming too much to bear. “I try to live for you and for me, I try to be the example you proved to be. It just catches up sometimes, Ya know? I miss asking you the questions I know you’d have the answers to. A bit of my fire has been snuffed…Lost some of that glow, because you my friend, should be here and that’s all I know. I promised you – I’ll never let them forget —AJ—”
Joy’s mention of accolades that Wactor can only receive posthumously was probably inspired by his mention at the 2025 SAG Awards. While most followers responded with heart emojis, one found the words, writing, “Very beautifully said. ❤️❤️.” And a friend of Joy’s shared some uplifting news: “Thank You my Lovely Friend for that Tribute to Our Boy Johnny Wactor. Please tune in everyone next Sunday for the Academy Awards, it’s been said that the Academy will Honor Johnny in the way that He deserves to be. Let’s tune in and see.” (Find out how two of Wactor’s three assailants have faced justice.)
