Jonathan Jackson Reveals What He Learned From His General Hospital Parents

After the news of Jonathan Jackson’s big return to General Hospital broke, the actor joined co-stars Steve Burton and Bradford Anderson on their Daily Drama podcast where he reminisced about working with his TV parents and shared what he learned from them.

Think Of Luke And Laura

Jackson worked with Anthony Geary and Genie Francis from 1993-1999, then again in 2010-2011, and returned to the show for a short stint in 2015 for Geary’s farewell. While Geary’s Luke hasn’t been on GH since 2017, Francis’ Laura has been a thriving character on the show since 2015.

“That has a huge part in it for me,” Jackson answered when Burton asked if Genie still being on the show played a part in his return. “When I came back in 2010, it was incredible to get to work with Tony again after all those years,” he remembered. “It’s a very special thing about this medium that you can work with someone when you’re 11 to 17 years old, then work with them again when you’re 28.”

“I know that you do have a big cheerleader in Genie Francis, by the way” Burton told Jackson, recounting the way she would always ask him if they can get Jackson back on the show. “As a fan of General Hospital overall, I’m excited for you and Genie to work together again.”

“I always thought, man, I would love to really be able to work with her again,” Jackson then said about his TV mom. “We haven’t really been able to have any kind of substantial story together since I was 17-18 years old.”

Teach Your Children Well

Having worked with Geary and Francis since he was 11 years old, Jackson mentioned several things he learned from the two GH icons. The actor noted the use of improv he learned from Geary, which allowed him to take risks during scenes at a young age. “Tony was doing improv, Genie was there, so I learned that from them, and the beauty of spontaneity.”

“One of the things that I would say that I learned from Tony and Genie – and having worked with Tony even more over the years, a lot from him – is he never stopped learning,” Jackson continued. “He’s my mentor, he always will be… but he had the posture of a student.”