Jonathan Jackson Explains Why He’s Leaving ‘General Hospital’: ‘The Hope Was to Stay on Longer’
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It was never Jonathan Jackson‘s intention to leave General Hospital just nine months after returning to the role of Lucky Spencer.
“No, it wasn’t,” Jackson reveals to TV Insider. “It was more of a real, sincere attempt from myself and from General Hospital to make it work for a longer period of time. The hope was to be able to stay on longer.”
But for Jackson, traveling between Tennessee (where he lives) and California (where the show films), ultimately proved too disruptive for his personal life. “There was always that possibility because it was a bit of an experiment on my part to see if I could make it work with the family dynamic,” the husband and father of three explains. “There were moments where I thought, ‘I think I can find this balance with the family and time back and forth,’ and then you just have to pray about it and try to do what you feel is right. We gave it our best shot, but we weren’t able to keep it going.”
Disney/Christine Bartoluccii
The actor reveals it’s a decision he arrived at only recently. “I was trying to stay in the moment as much as possible,” Jackson shares. “That’s really where my mindset was, taking it one day at a time, but also one month at a time, and just seeing how it was feeling. I have to say that none of this would have happened at all if Frank [Valentini, executive producer] wasn’t so open and helpful to even get it this far. So that’s definitely something I’ve been extremely blessed by.”
Being back at the soap he first joined in 1993 at just 11 years old was especially meaningful for Jackson, as he treasures his long-standing connection to Port Charles. “It’s always kind of nostalgic when I’m away from the show for a while and I come back,” he reflects. “In some ways, it’s always a bit overwhelming, because there aren’t that many situations in life that you get to go and enter into this world where a lot has changed and a lot has stayed the same. Seeing a lot of people in the crew, people you’ve known off and on for so many years, there are just those amazing connections. And then on top of that, you have the character you’re playing that has this history, and you get to work with so many people again.”
Reconnecting with his castmates was a high point for the five-time Daytime Emmy winner. “Working with Genie [Francis, Laura Collins] was very special because I didn’t really get to do that last time,” he says. “I loved the scenes with Maurice [Benard, Sonny Corinthos] and I absolutely loved working with Kate [Mansi, Kristina Corinthos]. That was a real highlight this time around. And [Rebecca Herbst, Elizabeth Webber] as well. When I was here in 2009 to 2011, it was more of the implosion of Lucky and Elizabeth, and it was just kind of full-on tragedy. This time, there was a lot of goodness and a lot of sweetness amidst the drama, and it was fun to be a part of that. And the response from the fans was really precious as well.”
His connection with Herbst is another aspect of the job Jackson treasures. “Becky is really one of the most talented people that I’ve worked with,” he praises. “I think Becky is an incredibly intuitive and very smart actress. I mean, she just doesn’t miss things. She’s just really an amazing performer, so it was a joy for me to get to work with her again. There is a certain kind of instinctive reality, not only when you’ve worked with people for so many years, but also when you’ve kind of grown up in the same world.
“I experienced that with Hayden Panettiere [ex-Sarah Roberts, One Life to Live; ex-Lizzie Spaulding, Guiding Light] on Nashville [where she played Juliette Barnes and he was Avery Barkley] because she grew up in the soap world, so the process of how we work was so similar, and it’s like that with Becky,” he continues. “There’s definitely a shorthand there, and sometimes if I’m making a choice that maybe isn’t super apparent on the page and wanting to experiment with taking it in a slightly different direction tonally, she’s there. She gets it instinctively, and I hope I’m the same thing for her. So that was a real blessing. I think sometimes she makes it look so easy and so natural that people aren’t necessarily aware of all the subtle things that she’s doing that are important to the character and to the scenes; the small nonverbal things going on that are really important for the story, too. And she’s just very locked into that stuff, so it makes it fun to get to work with someone who’s moving in that intuitive sphere.”
Disney/Bahareh Ritter
As for what’s next for Jackson, who will leave Port Charles this week, “There’s some touring coming up,” he reports. “I’ll be releasing a solo album later this year. I have at least one book that’s coming out later this year as well, a book of poetry and an anthology of poems that I’ve been working on for at least 15 years now. It’s called Anthology of Longing. And then there’s another book that came out in 2014 called The Mystery of Art, but this is almost like a second installment to that concept, an exploration into the art of story and how that relates to history and faith and poetry, and all that kind of stuff. So, that one’s scheduled to come out later this year. And then next year we’re going to be going to the UK and Europe, with Nashville touring, which is going to be really exciting. So, music and books and whatever other projects come along.”
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I was so excited when Lucky came back! I watched him in 1993 and was so sad to see him leave for so long. Elizabeth is his soul mate! Your mom (Laura) misses you! As far as I'm concerned, nobody could replace Jonathon Jackson!
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So true
Luke, Laura, Lucky, Lulu,
Are the best Lucky family!!!!!
Love them!
Too bad they are not a 4 some family in real life they are so great together!
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Love you Jonathan and Lucky! Will miss you so much! Don't wait too long to come back. 🥰
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I'm not sure that he will be back, because it seems like this time, they were kind of putting a true end to Lucky & Liz.🥹 Wishing him well!
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I'm hoping he will come back,
& for the first year lucky will be hanging with Aden in Spain so that's fantastic!!
Getting to be with his son, & that makes it great for Liz not to leave but still know lucky didn't run away, & maybe in a
Fantasy year story Liz will leave but say she is traveling with Liz & people will be happy to think they are together!
Hey why can't they do like Laura & Kevin,
Laura is on as the mayor,
Kevin still lives in port Charles with Laura pretend but we don't ever see him, can't they do that with Robert ,& lucky, pretend they are still on the show?
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I suppose they could, but when they come back over and over, then do a scene like the one that Lucky & Liz did, it truly seems like this time he won't be back. We can hope that he is with Aiden, but he likely won't stay there too long either, because that was the whole reason why he said that he wouldn't stay with Elizabeth, as much as he loved her.
This time, seemed like a true end to their story.There are only so many times they can try the "Let's try again" story. I think it's over at this point. She said that they would ALWAYS love each other, but I can't see a reason to keep doing "the dance of love" with them. It's time for us, and them, to let go of each other, and move on.
As for Robert, it's the same with him and Holly. Let them stay gone and live happily ever after. You'd think that they would come to see their grandchild though!
Bon Voyage all!!
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P
To bad JJ couldn't make it work family wise but after leaving GH he's going on tour? So to me that seems he had this planned already and not really serious about coming back to GH! What a waste of these 9 months because I was looking forward to having Lucky stick around for his son and Liz plus his mom and Lulu! Oh well good luck JJ! Maybe it's time for a recast?
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We are so lucky to have Lucky, he definitely a highlight and will be missed...so sad, GH people are like family...good luck
LUCKY!!!
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I cried too. I love Liz and Lucky saga. I was so happy when they got back together. I know there are a lot of fans were sad today too.
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I am SO BUMMED that John(Lucky) is leaving GH again!! I so Love it when he comes back on the show! There is only one Lucky and that is Jonathan/ Jackson!! I've watched you from the first day you came on and loved you then! Gonna Miss You!!
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I wish Jonathan could have found the family work balance that would have let him stay. It's hard to say that I'll miss him because he really wasn't given a storyline that I could look forward to seeing. I liked Lucky and Elizabeth but there really was no story there.
I hope they pair Elizabeth with Jason or Kelly thiebaud's character when she returns-- and I'm hoping she's Brit.
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Unfortunately I think they knew months ago that he wasn't going to stay so they changed what they originally had planned. The writers intended to reunite Liz and Lucky and make them central to GH. Sadly since JJ decided he couldn't commit they had to change the storyline. I was happy we would finally get the Liz and Lucky reunion their fans wanted since JJ originally left. I'm still extremely disappointed he decided to leave and forced the writers to breakup Liz and Lucky.
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I'm so heart broken that lucky is leaving again 💔 😞 I was so hopeful for Elizabeth and lucky to get back together. I hope he comes back soon !!!
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So annoying, he keeps coming and going.
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I sincerely hope the writers of GH will feel inclined to have Lucky say goodbye to his son.
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Lucky is going to travel with Aiden during the summer. He mentioned it on today's show.
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How on earth does Frank Valentini still have a job??? Long, long overdue for a change at EP/showrunner. He's destroyed GH with awful, repetitive stories and refuses to ever listen to the fans (many of whom are now ex-fans, thanks to him) one iota. IMO, the show will never be remotely fresh and decent again unless he's replaced. Not to mention, by many accounts he's a petty, vindictive, egocentric tyrant behind the scenes. I know many people who refuse to ever watch the show again unless he's shown the door.
Either ABC/Disney execs are purposely trying to tank GH or they're completely clueless on how to fix it. I don't know what's worse.
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Since I didn't watch GH during the time when Lucky was a regular, I didn't form any attachment to him. I wish him well.
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Does he take his family on tour?
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I will miss lucky for sure!!!!!
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I williss you Johnathan and will miss ulucky you were always my favorite one whi played him best but you need to do what's right with ur family so good luck hope you have a great time out with Nashville you were amazing in it godbless we wish u well💜💙🩵💕🥰😍❤️💗💛☺️
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I respect Jonathan's body of work and wish him well but Lucky's return this time was very weak and unfocused. I think GH either needs a Lucky who's willing to be there full time or needs to let Lucky live his life off canvas. His return and story was a tremendous letdown.
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He will be missed. It was great having him and his chemistry with so many was great v
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Interesting that he can't travel from TN to CA for filming, but he can go on tour to Europe next year.
He sounds a bit like a diva to me. Liz needs to be with someone stable.
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V
I have been enjoying JJ on Nashville. I love the Avery Juliette storylines. Some of the best casting in television. Nashville is a great show. I have ben rewatching it every day since we now have a channel devoted to the show. I hope the reunion finds its way to Texas. Jonathan is a great actor, I wondered why he wasn't a part of the Nurses Ball this year, but I wish him all the best. What about a reboot of Nashville?
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I will miss JJ but why can’t they just recast him so Lucky can stay on set?
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I’m glad we got to see a short reunion, but it would be best if JJ stay gone this time and return when the show comes to end. Tired of these revolving actors coming for a short period of time and leave. Best of Luck.
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I think GH should bring someone on the show that would finally give Elizabeth a legit long term romantic storyline,
and also liven her character up a bit. She never seems to have any luck in the romance department. Why is
that? Time for a DRAMATIC change in her life instead of leaving her available for Lucky when he never seems to really be available. Oh, he was "available" and wanted to marry her this time, but this time SHE turned HIM down?!!! Give me
a BREAK! Only in SOAPLAND. Shake things up with her GH, PLEASE!
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Love him for all these years but family comes first. Totally respect his decision. Quality Guy 👍♥️👍
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It just didn't make sense to bring Him back then we barely see Him then take Him out again wasted storyline. Do a recast because their is so much that He's apart of He has a child His Mother, Sister He has family there I'm so disappointed
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I hope he realizes how many Liz and Lucky fans were heartbroken that Lucky/JJ leaving GH. When Lucky returned, I saw some fans who were opposed to a Liz and Lucky reunion, but little by little they won fans over. I saw some fans change their minds and started rooting for them to get back together. That just shows the talent, chemistry and love between Jonathan and Becky. I'll always wish JJ could've stayed longterm on GH or I hope he is able to return soon.
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Why can't this guy just move to California? So lame.
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Wish he was staying. They make the best couple and I really enjoy his acting. Loved him on Nashville too!
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I am among those SO disappointed that he wasn't given a more compelling storyline to keep him longer, much as I love Lucky & Liz together. No scenes with Genie? No storyline with Aiden? So many missed opportunities. I truly hope GH will get their act(ing) together and entice him back, even if just seasonally, for some meaningful stories. He and we deserve that!
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I wish you the best of luck and to you and your family! Family is your priority and we will miss you on GH.
God bless you.
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i can see how traveling like that wouldn’t work in the long run. Good luck to him!
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Love lucky and he will be missed! Great job in general hospital , and even better for making family #1. Good luck to your future and it's best you stay out of ca.
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Best wishes on your adventures and whats next. Like your music 🫶 ✌️
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It must be nice financially to walk away from money. I'm sure less air time could have happened. Does he think he's only going to film in TN? Not gonna happen.
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I like that he is putting his family first. I am sure he will be back if he can make it work.
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He will definitely be missed. All the best for you.
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Seriously……what is up with GH cast members up and quitting? That was just too much of a tease for me. I guess it’s time for me to up and leave GH myself.😀
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