Growing up in the age of teeny bopper magazines of the ‘90s, there were many different dreamboats gracing the covers and inside pages. Though JTT and Devon Sawa were usually the ones to get the huge cover images, another of our favorite dreamboats was almost always on the cover right there with them: Jonathan Jackson. If Brad Renfro was the bad boy of our dreamboats, then Jonathan Jackson was undoubtedly the good guy who was always very vocal about his faith, choosing not to drink or do drugs, and being a proponent of abstinence before marriage.
Though he was born in Orlando, Florida, Jonathan grew up in the Pacific Northwest. After a family trip to Universal Studios Hollywood in 1991, both Jonathan and his brother Richard decided they wanted to pursue acting. So, upon returning home, the two took acting lessons in Portland, Oregon. It wasn’t long before both of them started booking acting gigs, prompting a move to Burbank part-time with their mom in 1993. After booking some commercials, Jonathan landed the role that would launch his career: Lucky Spencer on the daytime soap opera General Hospital.
During his time on the soap, Jonathan won numerous young actor awards, and found time to take on roles in feature films and television movies before eventually leaving the soap. Unlike many of our ‘90s teen dreamboats, Jonathan has stayed quite active both in acting and in his other passion, music. Some of his most recent roles include starring as Avery Barkley on Nashville, where he got to show off his musical chops, and a recurring role in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles as Kyle Reese, John Connor’s father.
These days, Jonathan and his brother Richard continue to make music together in their band Enation, and Jonathan has delved a bit deeper into his faith. In 2012, he and his family were officially baptized into the Eastern Orthodox church, and as of September 2020, he had moved to Ireland to help support a new monastery being founded by the Romanian Orthodox Metropolis of Southern and Western Europe. Will we see him acting again anytime soon? Time will tell, but in the meantime, we can reminisce about his roles during his teen dreamboat era, so let’s get to it!
Wanna check out all of our ‘90s teen dreamboats? We know you do. Click here for a complete breakdown!
General Hospital (1993–99, 2009–11, 2015)
General Hospital is one of the longest-running American soap operas of all-time, having started airing on ABC in 1963. Jonathan played Lucky Spencer, the son of the incredibly popular couple Luke and Laura. Look, so much happens on soap operas, it’s not worth trying to recap what he went through as Lucky, but one of his most memorable storylines was his romance with Elizabeth Webber.
Camp Nowhere (1994)
In Camp Nowhere, Jonathan stars as Morris aka Mud who, along with some other classmates, doesn’t want to go to the summer camp picked out by his parents. So, the kids come up with a scheme to create their own summer camp free of adult supervision, with the help of an ex drama teacher, played by Christopher Lloyd. The movie is a lot of fun, and also features fellow ’90s teen dreamboat Andrew Keegan, and Jessica Alba in one of her first roles.
The Prisoner of Zenda, Inc. (1996)
In the television movie The Prisoner of Zenda, Inc, Jonathan takes on two roles in a classic switcheroo storyline. After the owner of the company Zenda, Inc. dies, his 14-year-old son is meant to take over. Rivals don’t want this to happen, so they kidnap him. So, the company finds a lookalike to step into his place for a few days while they try to recover him. Jonathan’s brother Richard co-starred in this film as well as William Shatner.
The Deep End of the Ocean (1999)
Based on the super popular book of the same name, The Deep End of the Ocean is about a family who struggles after the abduction and subsequent return, nine years later, of one of their children. Jonathan plays the teenage version of the son who didn’t get abducted, who struggles with feeling like it was his fault. Michelle Pfeiffer, Treat Williams, Whoopi Goldberg, and Ryan Merriman all co-star in this film.
Trapped in a Purple Haze (2000)
Trapped in a Purple Haze was a television movie that aired on ABC, and starred Jonathan as a teenager who becomes addicted to heroin. It shows the downward spiral of his life thanks to his addiction, and feels very much like a Lifetime movie. Hayden Christensen and Carly Pope co-star.
Tuck Everlasting (2002)
Based on the 1975 book, Tuck Everlasting takes place in 1914, and is about teenager Winnie, played by Alexis Bledel, who comes upon the Tuck family. Though they seem normal, the Tucks have a secret — they’re immortal, thanks to a nearby spring that grants unending life. Winnie falls for Jesse Tuck, played by Jonathan, and is torn between drinking from the spring and staying with him forever, or letting him go.
Though Jonathan had a couple guest star stints on the likes of Boy Meets World as well as roles in some lesser-known movies, the above titles were definitely his most memorable during his peak teen dreamboat time. Let us know your favorite Jonathan Jackson role in the comments, but first, check out some of his early commercials:
- In 2002, at the young age of 20, Jonathan married former General Hospital actress Lisa Vultaggio. They have three children together.
- Jonathan has stated that he won’t act in a role that is a “direct slap in the face of God.” While he said he would portray people who were unbelieving, he would only do so if that wasn’t the message of the whole film or series.
- Jonathan was reportedly a frontrunner to play Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode II. When he didn’t get the role, publications speculated that it was because of the previous publicity stating that he was in the running!
- In 1999, he was named by People magazine as one of their “50 Most Beautiful People in the World.”
- He has returned to his Lucky Spencer role on General Hospital multiple times since he first left, and even won two Daytime Emmy awards for his return in 2011 and 2012, in addition to his many previous awards for the role.
- In 2002, at the young age of 20, Jonathan married former General Hospital actress Lisa Vultaggio. They have three children together.
- Jonathan has stated that he won’t act in a role that is a “direct slap in the face of God.” While he said he would portray people who were unbelieving, he would only do so if that wasn’t the message of the whole film or series.
- Jonathan was reportedly a frontrunner to play Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode II. When he didn’t get the role, publications speculated that it was because of the previous publicity stating that he was in the running!
- In 1999, he was named by People magazine as one of their “50 Most Beautiful People in the World.”
- He has returned to his Lucky Spencer role on General Hospital multiple times since he first left, and even won two Daytime Emmy awards for his return in 2011 and 2012, in addition to his many previous awards for the role.
