Scott Bryce, a prolific actor best known for playing the charming and cunning antihero Craig Montgomery on the CBS daytime drama “As the World Turns,” died on Sunday in New Haven, Conn. He was 68.
His death, in a hospital, was confirmed by his son, Jackson Bryce, who said in a statement that the cause was stomach and esophageal cancer.
“What began as stage three esophageal cancer eventually spread and became brain tumors that took his life away from him,” Jackson Bryce wrote in a separate post on Instagram.
Mr. Bryce had a prolific acting career with more than 60 television, film and theater credits dating to the late 1970s. But he found his greatest measure of fame among daytime viewers when he originated the role of Craig Montgomery on “As the World Turns” in 1982. (Three other actors — Hunt Block, Jeffrey Meek and Jon Lindstrom — played the character at various points over the show’s run.)
A popular Craig Montgomery story line in the 1980s involved a love triangle with Betsy Stewart (first played by Meg Ryan) and Steve Andropoulos (Frank Runyeon).
Mr. Bryce’s character schemed to get his way in personal relationships as well as business in Oakdale, the fictional town where the show was set.
Montgomery’s relationships were often messy. In one salacious subplot, he had an affair with his future mother-in-law, Lucinda Walsh (Elizabeth Hubbard).
Mr. Bryce played the role on and off until 2008, appearing in 280 episodes of the show, which was canceled by CBS in 2010.
For his work on “As the World Turns,” Mr. Bryce was nominated twice for a Daytime Emmy Award for outstanding lead actor in 1986 and 1987.
Scott Macalister Bryce was born on Jan. 6, 1958, in New York City to Ed and Dorothy Bryce, both of whom were actors. His father portrayed Bill Bauer on the CBS soap opera “Guiding Light” for more than two decades, and his mother was known for her role in the hospital drama “The Doctors.”
Scott Bryce was an active member of the student theater group at Staples High School in Westport, Conn., and went on to train at the Juilliard School, according to a CBS bio.
In 1977, he made his way to Broadway and appeared at the Palace Theater in “Caesar & Cleopatra.”
Away from “As the World Turns,” he had many guest and recurring roles on television shows. He was Nancy McKeon’s love interest on “The Facts of Life” in 1988 and a doctor in an episode of “The Golden Girls.” His other television credits include “Murphy Brown,” “L.A. Law,” “30 Rock” and “Gossip Girl.”
He also had a recurring role as Mike McQueen, the father of Leslie Bibb’s character in the teen comedy series “Popular.” He appeared in more than 40 episodes of the series, which ran from 1999 to 2001 on the WB network.
His film appearances included “Lethal Weapon 3” (1992) and “Up Close and Personal” (1996).
In addition to his work on “As the World Turns,” Mr. Bryce played a doctor in six episodes of the ABC soap opera “One Life to Live” in 2006.
Mr. Bryce’s last television credit was in a 2024 episode of “Law and Order.”
Jackson Bryce said on Instagram that when his father was asked what he wanted people to remember about him, his response was: “I was a one-take actor. Two takes, max.”
In addition to his son, Mr. Bryce is survived by his wife, Jodi Stevens, and his brothers, David and Phil.
When Mr. Bryce wasn’t on camera, he was working behind the scenes. In 2010, he produced the television film “Frederick Douglass: From Slavery to Freedom.” That same year, he produced and directed the soap opera satire “Steamboat.”
He was an acting teacher at ACT (A Contemporary Theater) of Connecticut and he and his wife ran SBE Studio (Stevens Bryce Entertainment), which offers instruction to aspiring actors and singers.
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