Fans were stunned to learn that soap star Billy Miller had passed away on Sept. 15, just days shy of his 44th birthday. The actor had earned legions of fans and multiple Daytime Emmy Awards for his work as ALL MY CHILDREN’s Richie, THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS’ Billy, and GENERAL HOSPITAL’s Jason and Drew. Now, his mother, Patricia Miller, has addressed her son’s death in a statement.
“I would like to share the following thoughts,” she wrote. “I want to personally thank the many fans and personal friends for the overwhelming amount of love, prayers, and condolences sent to me and my family on the devastating death of my son, BJ — Billy Miller.
“He fought a long, hard, valiant battle with bipolar depression for years,” Miller continued. “He did everything he could to control the disease. He loved his family, his friends, and his fans but in the end, the disease won the fight and he surrendered his life. The other causes of death being told are not true. I wish they were but they just aren’t.
“We all loved him so much and are trying desperately to deal with our loss,” she concluded. “I will have nothing further to say. Thanks for the love and support.”
Our thoughts continue to be with Miller’s family and friends during this incredibly difficult time.
Jason Thompson Pays Heartfelt Tribute to Billy Miller
In the wake of Billy Miller’s heartbreaking passing, Jason Thompson admitted he struggled to add his voice to the other friends and colleagues paying tribute to the late actor. Thompson is currently playing the role of Billy Abbott on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS, which was previously played by Miller. But in between that time, the two worked together on GENERAL HOSPITAL where Thompson was playing the role of Patrick Drake and Miller was taking over the role of Jason Morgan.
“I think a lot of my followers will know that Billy Miller passed away a couple days ago,” Thompson said in an Instagram video, his voice heavy with emotion. “And I’ve tried to write a couple things but it hasn’t really… I haven’t really been able to express… what I feel… to be honest. It was shocking and really, really tough to hear about that. For whatever reason… it’s hard to think about him being gone.
“So a few years ago,” he continued. “More than a few years ago… sometimes I lose track of time. But I was very much aware of Billy when I was on GH, more than 10, 12 years ago, or whatever it was because he was a fantastic actor. And I remember seeing him and I remember being in the audience when he won a few of his Emmys. And he was a brilliant actor. He had that kind of thing where… he was just up on screen and you believed every word that he said. He was in it. And then, when he left Y&R and he came over to GH, we got to work together and became friends.”
Then, when Thompson made the decision to leave GH, he was surprised when Miller suggested that if he went over to Y&R, he could take over his old role. “Cut to maybe a month or two later on, the opportunity for me to play Billy Abbott was legitimately presented to me… and I took it,” he recalled. “And I have to say, knowing that it was his role — he’s the one that really made that character — he kept me honest for the last eight years.
“I was almost fearful of my job to a certain extent because I thought that he was always gonna be able to come back whenever he wanted to because he was that good,” he added. “And people loved him that much. The cast loved him and the fans and audiences loved his work so much that he kept me honest and I worked… very hard to try and make sure that I could live up to his level where he brought Billy.”
Thompson closed out his video by assuring his late friend that he would do everything in his power to honor the legacy that he created. “The truth is now, for as long as I’m blessed to play that character,” he declared, “I’m just gonna be so dedicated to making sure that I can do right by it.”
