Esta TerBlanche, All My Children Star, Dead At 51

Esta TerBlanche, who played Gillian Andrassay on "All My Children" from 1997 to 2001, died on July 18, 2024, at her home in Los Angeles; she was 51. Her publicist, Lisa Rodrigo, posted to Facebook, saying that TerBlanche had died "of natural causes. An autopsy report is pending. I am still processing and in shock Esta was a beautiful soul in and out. I was proud to know her and work with her." Others who'd worked with TerBlanche shared similar things on social media; Annie Spoliansky posted to Instagram stories, saying, "She was a beautiful and gentle soul who will be incredibly missed." TerBlanche's death comes the same year as Alec Musser, was also an "All My Children" alum who died unexpectedly.

Born in Rustenburg, South Africa, on January 7, 1973, TerBlanche grew up on a game farm and was Miss Teen South Africa at 18 before she got into acting. She was one of those soap opera stars that you didn't hear much from; TerBlanche wanted to return to her home country, which was why her character was written off "AMC" in show in 2001. After returning home, TerBlanche opened a spa, but she stayed in the entertainment industry, working on animal documentaries and hosting some TV shows.

Before Esta TerBlanche moved to the U.S. and got her role on "All My Children," she starred as Bienkie Naude in the South African soap opera "Egoli: Place of Gold" from 1992 to 1995. The show's Facebook page posted a tribute to TerBlanche: "Her presence on screen will be deeply missed ... Esta's legacy will live on through her remarkable body of work, inspiring future generations of actors and actresses."

TerBlanche enjoyed her time on "AMC," telling Soap Opera Digest that one of her favorite moments on the show was when her character couldn't talk: "It was really hard because I had to convey all these emotions without words to express myself. It was a big challenge."

One of the show's popular storylines involved TerBlanche's character Gillian, a Hungarian princess, and her first husband, Ryan Lavery, played by Hallmark Channel's Cameron Mathison. Her character may have been killed off in 2001, but TerBlanche and Mathison's characters got an on-screen reunion for the 2011 series finale when she came back as a ghost. Mathison posted to his Instagram stories in tribute to TerBlanche. Even though "All My Children" has been off the air for over 10 years, fans still love TerBlanche, leaving comments on her most recent Instagram posts with outpourings of sadness at the news of her death.