Jason Morgan is a fictional character on the ABC soap opera, General Hospital and has appeared on its SOAPnet spin-off series, General Hospital: Night Shift. He is the son of the late, Dr. Alan Quartermaine and his late mistress, Susan Moore and the adoptive son of Dr. Monica Quartermaine. He is the identical twin of former Navy S.E.A.L., Chief Drew Quartermaine.
The role was originated on November 11, 1981, by Quinn Carlson until June 3, 1982. Child actor Bryan Beck stepped into the role on September 8, 1982 to 1986. Actor Carmel Fainbaum played Jason as a baby in 2012.
The role has been portrayed by Emmy award winning actor Steve Burton, on and off, since 1991. During his time as Jason, Burton was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Younger Actor in 1997, won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 1998, was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2000, and was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in 2005.
After Burton left GH in 2012, he moved to The Young and the Restless to play Dylan McAvoy starting in 2013 but he departed in 2017.
In 2014, the role of Jason was recast with three-time Daytime Emmy-award winning actor Billy Miller. While Jason returned to the canvas on August 12, 2014, Miller made his first appearance as the new Jason Morgan (with plastic surgery) on October 1, 2014. However, when Burton returned in late 2017 as the real Jason Morgan, Miller's portrayal of Jason was retconned; his character turned out to be Jason's identical twin brother, Chief Andrew Cain, who was memory-mapped into believing he was Jason.
During Miller's time as both Jason and Drew, he and Burton received pre-nominations for their performances, and Miller was nominated in 2018 for his portrayal of Jason.
Burton returned to GH as "Patient 6" on September 19, 2017, but was ultimately revealed to be the real Jason Morgan on December 1, 2017. However, Burton was let go from GH in 2021 due to not complying with the Covid vaccine mandate at the time and as a result, he made his last appearance on November 19, 2021.
Burton returned as Jason on March 4, 2024.
He is best known for his relationships with Carly Spencer, Robin Scorpio, Elizabeth Webber, Sam McCall, and Sonny Corinthos.
Characterization[]
Jason Morgan and his twin brother, Drew Quartermaine, were conceived during an affair between their father, Alan Quartermaine, and Susan Moore. Several months into her pregnancy, Susan fled Port Charles for New York City to stay with her cousin, Heather Webber. Fearing Alan would find her and take their child back to Port Charles, Susan avoided ultrasounds. Heather enlisted Nurse Betsy Frank to check on the baby's well-being. During the examination, Betsy discovered two heartbeats, revealing Susan was carrying twins.
In distress and knowing that Alan was on her trail, Susan was overwhelmed by the idea of escaping with two infants. Heather observed that the Quartermaines didn't know about the second child and advised Susan to go back to Port Charles with one baby to settle the custody issue, and then keep the other child a secret. Susan went back with the elder, Jason, while Drew stayed with Betsy, who consented to look after him until Susan could return.
Following Jason's birth, Alan provided financial support but got entangled in a custody dispute over his other son, A.J. Quartermaine. Jason lived with his mother and stepfather, Scott Baldwin, until her death, after which he briefly stayed with Susan's aunt, Alice Grant. Alan later brought him to the Quartermaine mansion to live with himself, Monica, and the rest of the family, who remained oblivious to Drew's existence.
Monica initially struggled with the presence of Alan's illegitimate son in her house but eventually came to love Jason as her own and adopted him. Jason and A.J. spent their early years in the mansion before being sent to a boarding school in Switzerland. They returned in 1991, coinciding with Burton's first appearance as Jason.
Sonny Corinthos, Carly Spencer, Damian Spinelli, and Robin Scorpio-Drake are his best friends.
Jason is the father of three children (one of which is deceased):
- A deceased unnamed and unborn child, conceived with his late ex-wife, Courtney Matthews. Miscarried in August of 2003. Jason and Courtney believed their child was a girl and wanted to name her Emily, after Jason's sister.
- A son named Jacob Martin, who goes by Jake and shares Jason's initials, was born in May 2007 from a one-night stand with Nurse Elizabeth Webber. In 2011, it was believed that Jake had perished in a hit-and-run caused by his legal paternal grandfather, Luke Spencer. However, four years later, on July 6, 2015, it was revealed that Jake was alive and on Cassadine Island with Helena Cassadine. Elizabeth has maintained full custody of Jake since his birth.
- A son named, Daniel Edward, who goes by Danny and bears his paternal great-grandfather's middle name, was born in June of 2012, conceived with his ex-wife, Sam McCall. Jason and Sam have shared custody.
He regards his nephew, Michael Corinthos, as his own son and is fully dedicated to protecting him at all costs, a commitment that began the moment he first held him. Due to Carly's postpartum depression, he raised Michael for the first year of his life and thinks of him as his firstborn.
Jason and Sam tied the knot on September 22, 2011. In October 2012, following the presumed death of their son at birth, they were joyfully reunited with Danny. However, their happiness was short-lived as Jason was soon presumed dead after being shot in the back and pushed into the pier by Cesar Faison, who was disguised as Duke Lavery, sparking the Jason Morgan Conspiracy.
In 2014, a man believed to be Jason returned to Port Charles but was struck by a car driven by Ava Jerome while fleeing from Helena Cassadine's henchmen. The accident severely disfigured his face and left him gravely injured, necessitating life-saving and reconstructive facial surgery at the hospital, which altered his appearance entirely. Upon awakening with amnesia, he adopted the name "Jake Doe," and despite his unknown identity, many felt a connection to him.
In November 2015, Carly managed to deduce his true identity when a facial recognition program developed by Spinelli matched "Jake's" face with Jason Morgan's, and a subsequent DNA test confirmed a 100% match. Carly informed "Jake" of his identity as Jason, and although initially in denial, he eventually accepted the truth without regaining his memories. By 2016, "Jason" had recovered his memories and continued his life.
In 2017, an enigmatic individual referred to as "Patient 6" arrived in Port Charles, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Jason's pre-accident appearance. DNA testing indicated that both "Jason" and "Patient 6" were matches to Jason Morgan, revealing them as identical twins. It was soon discovered that "Patient 6" was the real Jason Morgan, and the man thought to be Jason since 2014 was in fact his twin, Andrew Cain. Drew had been manipulated by Dr. Andre Maddox into believing he was Jason, following orders from Cesar Faison and his son Henrik, also known as Peter August. Their scheme involved brainwashing Drew to assume Jason's identity and then deploying him to Port Charles as a sleeper agent programmed to carry out assassinations without any recollection of the acts. Faison disclosed that he targeted Drew for the brainwashing because the technique would not be effective on Jason due to his previous brain injuries.
Drew was reluctant to step out of Jason's life after his true identity came to light. Upon his return, Sam, who had developed feelings for Drew, ended her marriage with Jason. Yet, when Sam recognized her affection for Drew's guise as Jason, they parted ways, paving the path for her reconciliation with Jason. Despite this, Jason's steadfast loyalty to the mob led to another separation. Following a year of discord, Jason and Drew started to repair their bond, fostering mutual respect but not regarding each other as brothers or friends. However, when Shiloh, their shared adversary, aimed to extract Drew's original memories to implant them into Jason, Drew expressed genuine concern for Jason's safety, even referring to him as his brother.
He and his late newfound nephew, Oscar Nero-Quartermaine, were close and was completely heartbroken after learning of his death.