5 rivals who almost took General Hospital’s Sonny Corinthos down (and 5 who embarrassed themselves trying)

The benevolent mob boss of Port Charles, Sonny Corinthos of General Hospital, constantly faces danger from his rivals. Over the years many people, groups and organizations have tried to target him. While some of his rivals include other mobsters who want to establish businesses in Port Charles, others are law enforcers or spy agencies. Yet some others have been members of influential families of Port Charles.

While some of his enemies pushed Sonny Corinthos (Maurice Benard) to the brink of destruction, others have failed miserably in their attempts.

5 enemies who managed to corner Sonny on General Hospital

1) Cesar Faison

Anders Hove as Cesar Faison on General Hospital | Image: ABC

Cesar Faison, played by Anders Hove, represented the evil side of an obsessed scientist. Faison eliminated people in the path of his missions. He targeted Sonny multiple times, from trying to take away his assets to ambushing Sonny’s right-hand man, Jason Morgan (Steve Burton).

After years of targeting Sonny and the people he loved, Faison’s evil run came to an end in 2018. After Faison killed his cop son, Nathan West (Ryan Paevey), Jason brought justice by killing the villain. However, Faison managed to cause much harm and chaos in Sonny’s life.

2) Cyrus Renault

Jeff Kober as Cyrus Renault on General Hospital | Image: ABC

Cyrus (Jeff Kober) was a drug lord who wanted to take over Sonny’s position in Port Charles. Although held behind bars, Cyrus managed to import drugs into the streets of the town, endangering lives. On Sonny’s behest, Jason dismantled Cyrus’s business in Port Charles and provided the Feds with intel on the mobster.

After release from prison, Cyrus claimed to have changed and was intent on spreading God’s message. However, behind the pious man’s façade, he went on to commit a series of murders at the hospital using digitalis. After attacking Lucky Spencer (Jonathan Jackson) with the drug, he was found by Josslyn Jacks (Eden McCoy) at his hideout, and the latter shot him dead.

3) Julian Jerome

William deVry played Julian Jerome on General Hospital | Image: ABC

As longtime General Hospital fans know, the Jerome family was also involved with crime and mob business, making the Jeromes and the Corinthos enemies. Julian Jerome (William deVry) and Sonny share a decade-long enmity. Multiple complications escalated the rivalry.

Julian married Sonny’s former lover, Alexis Davis (Nancy Lee Grahn), and held a knife to her throat. On the other hand, the car bomb meant for Julian killed Sonny’s son, Morgan Corinthos (Brian Craig). After Julian’s hitman killed Sonny’s friend, Sonny avenged by killing the hitman. Finally, Julian joined hands with Cyrus and bombed the Floating Rib. As an injured Julian was escaping, Sonny tracked him down and offered a deal. However, Julian refused to turn in Cyrus, and Sonny shot him.

4) Jenz Sidwell

Carlo Rota as Jenz Sidwell on General Hospital | Image: ABC

Jenz Sidwell (Carlo Rota) and Sonny’s enmity is quite recent after Holly (Emma Samms) duped Sidwell of uncut diamonds, and Sonny helped her park the stones. Unable to frame Holly or Sonny, Sidwell arrived in Port Charles as a resident. He bought Wyndemere Castle and joined Deception as a supplier of zincite.

However, soon he tried underhanded ways to target Sonny. On one hand, he set fire to the restaurant run by Sonny’s daughter, while on the other, he blackmailed Mayor Laura Collins (Genie Francis) into handing over Sonny’s piers to him. After believing Sonny was responsible for the recent death of his son, Marco Rios (Adrian Achondo), Sidwell is gearing up for revenge and a mob clash.

5) Ross Cullum

Andrew Hawkes as Ross Cullum in a scene from General Hospital | Image: ABC

A recent addition to the town, Ross Cullum, played by Andrew Hawkes, is the WSB Director who is working alongside Sidwell in a secret cold fusion project. He is aware of Sidwell’s rivalry with Sonny and might have suggested the idea of taking Sonny’s piers. While the General Hospital viewers saw him shredding Anna’s (Finola Hughes) mental health and threatening Rocco (Finn Carr), his bigger crime was stabbing Marco ruthlessly.

General Hospital: 5 rivals whose attacks on Sonny fell flat

1) John Cates

Adam J Harrington played FBI agent John Cates on General Hospital | Image: ABC

While FBI Agent John Cates, AKA Jagger (Adam J Harrington), arrived in Port Charles in 2024, his backstory revealed that Jagger and Sonny knew each other in their early days. Jagger was jealous of Sonny for the latter’s attempt at employing Jagger’s girlfriend in his strip club and later, helping his younger brother cope with HIV/AIDS.

As an FBI agent, Cates targeted Sonny, his allies, and his family. To corner Sonny into submission, he threatened to put Carly (Laura Wright) and Kristina (Kate Mansi) behind bars. Cates also tried to blackmail Sonny, pushing the latter to shoot the FBI agent dead and hiding the body.

2) Valentin Cassadine

James Patrick Stuart as Valentin Cassadine in a scene from General Hospital | Image: ABC

As a Cassadine, Valentin (James Patrick Stuart) has a long-standing rivalry with Sonny Corinthos. His direct enmity started in 2016, when he trapped Sonny in Cassadine Island, and in return, Jason and Sonny captured him. In March 2024, Valentin tampered with Sonny’s bipolar medicines in an attempt to eliminate the mob boss and take over his piers.

While Valentin fled town in mid-2024, Sonny found him and held him at gunpoint in March 2025. Valentin offered vital intel on Pikeman Group and Jack Brennan (now played by Chris McKenna) to escape Sonny’s wrath. Since then, he has maintained a low profile.

3) Ric Lansing

Rick Hearst plays Ric Lansing on General Hospital | Image: ABC

Ric Lansing (Rick Hearst) is Sonny’s half-brother. While he arrived in the General Hospital storyline in 2002, he expressed deep-held jealousy for his brother over their mother, Adela, choosing to raise Sonny while leaving Ric to be raised by his father. As a high-profile attorney, Ric tried legal loopholes to take down his brother.

Over the years, Ric sided with Sonny’s enemies and indulged in many nasty actions against his brother, from kidnapping Carly to double-crossing Sonny. However, his recent experience of being held hostage by Alexis and Ava Jerome (Maura West), made him realize the importance of family. As such, he reconciled with Sonny for the sake of his daughter.

4) Tracy Quartermaine

Jane Elliot as Tracy Quartermaine on General Hospital | Image: ABC

The Quartermaine family has long disliked Sonny Corinthos for his mob connections. To add to that, Tracy (Jane Elliot) developed intense animosity towards the mob boss after the latter’s role in AJ Quartermaine’s (Sean Kanan) death. She continued with her stance after Michael (then played by Chad Duell) was injured in the explosion at Sonny’s penthouse. Fiercely protective of her family, she worried that Gio’s (Giovanni Mazza) closeness with Sonny would hurt the young adult as well.

While Tracy pursued the stand of Measure C in an attempt to take down Sonny’s control over Port Charles, she nonetheless agreed to wind down her attacks due to Sonny’s friendship with Jason, who is family. However, so far, all of Tracy’s attacks have not affected Sonny.

5) Drew Cain

Cameron Mathison as Drew Cain on General Hospital | Image: ABC

As General Hospital fans know, Drew Cain (Cameron Mathison) went through harrowing experiences in his early stay in Port Charles and proved himself to be a hero. His animosity with Sonny started in 2022, when he had an affair with Carly. However, when the duo was charged with inside trading, Drew took the fall alone and landed in prison. His return in 2024 saw a ruthless and ambitious persona, leading to his political career.

While he assumed the Quartermaine family name, his affair with Willow Tait (Katelyn MacMullen) made him an enemy of Willow’s husband and Sonny’s adoptive son, Michael. Drew stepped up to befriend mobster Sidwell to destroy Sonny’s empire. While Drew lined up a slew of nasty moves and questionable connections to take down Sonny, his newlywed wife drugged him into a “locked-in” syndrome, leaving him incapable of pursuing his war on the mob boss.