Five-time Daytime Emmy winner Jonathan Jackson will return to General Hospital as Lucky Spencer on Friday, August 23.
The actor, who made his debut in 1993 as the offspring of soap’s most famous duo, Luke Spencer (Anthony Geary) and Laura Collins (Genie Francis), and has visited a handful of times over the years, opens up about to TV Insider about his Port Charles comeback.
How did your return to General Hospital come about?
Jonathan Jackson: Well, it was one of those things that almost happened a few other times over the last however many years. I remember talking to Frank [Valentini, executive producer] right around the time Nashville [where he played Avery Barkley] was beginning [in 2012] and we were trying to figure out a way to have it work out. And then we circled around again, right around the pandemic, and it just never quite made sense for any of us. This time around, thankfully it all lined up, and I was excited.
What is it like for you to step into the role again? Do you have to find who Lucky is today?
It’s very interesting, that process. I’ve had to approach it more than once throughout my life after really significant gaps. In 2015, when I came back, it was just for two days, for Tony’s [Geary] exit from the show. That felt like a blur, so I guess it’s been since 2011 since I’ve been a regular. I mean, that’s a long time, and the first time I left [in 1999], there was a decade gap before I came back. I think I was around 28 years old and that felt more disorienting and a little bit strange, and I think it was just because I left the show when I was 17. You’re just a very different person in some ways when you’re 28 as opposed to 17. And so finding the role as an adult, coming back with Lucky being a cop and all that, it just felt different. I felt like I needed to establish something quite different than when I was a teenager. This doesn’t feel as difficult for some reason. It felt pretty seamless, actually. And I think that the four episodes I did in 2015 helped as well, just to have that anchoring moment with Tony, especially. So, I expected it to feel more odd but it felt very seamless.
How would you describe the Lucky we are going to see?
I guess I would say in some ways, he’s the most like Luke that he’s ever been. That’s a bit of the feeling that I get. In 2010 when I came back, he was a cop and he was trying to create an identity for himself, and in some ways in opposition to his father. I don’t exactly know where he is now because we’re just kind of beginning but it just feels like he’s become a little bit more like his father as time has gone on.
Michael Yada/ABC
Is there anything you are hoping you get to do this time around?
I hope I get a chance to work with a lot of people that I’ve never worked with or maybe I worked with in a very small way years ago. Working with Genie [Francis] was a big personal incentive to come back, because when I was there in 2010, 2011, Genie wasn’t on the show and I always kind of felt like I missed out on working with her as an adult, so I’m very excited about that, obviously.
What does it mean to you that you can jump back in with people you have worked with before?
It’s a real gift. There are certain people that you might work with more than once on a film — I got to work with Treat Williams on more than one film and that was a real blessing — but that’s very different than coming back after 10 years and then another 10 years and getting to work with the same people and the same characters and have that history. It’s an amazing thing and it’s fun for me to not just do the work, but get to connect with people and just see where they are in life.
What was your first day back like?
It was like, “Let’s get to work.” I have a great deal of respect for the show and for everyone involved, and nowadays to see the amount of pages that the show as a whole is accomplishing on a daily basis is just mind-boggling. So, I’m just very focused and I want to try to do the best work that I can. In terms of the feeling with the character, the writing was great, which helps a lot as an actor. When the writing is good, it just makes everything easier.
There was a very happy fan reaction when the news broke of your return. How does it feel that the fans are so invested in both you and Lucky and excited about your comeback?
I was a bit blown away, to be honest, by the response. I mean, throughout the years there have been people saying, “Please come back to GH,” but I wasn’t expecting the degree of response that we had, so that was really encouraging.
You’ve done a lot of projects since leaving, but I imagine GH played a large role in shaping you and your professional career. What does your connection to General Hospital mean to you today?
Well, as an actor and as an artist, my time at General Hospital was really the formation of all of that for me. Starting at 11, being under the care and mentorship of Tony and Genie was really one of the greatest gifts of my life. At that age, you’re a sponge and I really couldn’t imagine a better situation to be in to be able to learn. Both Tony and Genie have a great love for the craft and they passed that on to me, always working to make the scenes better and to push ourselves. I’ve said this to Tony, and it’s true: He’s with me in every scene that I do, in any project that I do. With Genie, she gave me so much incredible advice, but there’s also just this kind of visceral, emotional openness that she passed on to me that I feel like she’s with me in every project I do as well. And then in my personal life, that’s where I met my wife [Lisa Vultaggio, ex-Hannah Scott]. When we went back in 2010, our kids [Caleb and Adora] were kind of young and now we’re back again and my kids are older. So, there’s so much history there and great friendships with people. I’m just really grateful.
Ron Tom / ABC / Everett Collection
You will make your return on-screen on August 23. What can you tease about what Lucky’s been doing since we last saw him?
Well, he’s been away for almost a decade, so I would say that+ the reasons for him being away and what he’s been up to are revealed. He hasn’t just been sitting in an apartment writing his novel. He’s been up to stuff.
How long will Lucky be around this time?
When I came back in 2015, that was just for a few episodes for Tony’s exit and this is not that. This is back in a substantial, real way, which I’m excited about.
