Jason Thompson Opens up About Leaving GH for Y&R
When Jason Thompson joined the cast of GENERAL HOSPITAL as Dr. Patrick Drake back in 2005, he had no idea what he was getting into, but it has led to a career in daytime that has spanned nearly two decades!
“Soaps weren’t really on my radar,” he admitted to Soap Opera Digest. I really didn’t know what was ahead for me. I was pretty young when I think about it. I was [auditioning] for a good seven years before I really had anything and so, you know, when it’s getting kind of close to the throw-in-the-towel kind of thing, you start to think about that this is an amazing opportunity.”
During his 10 years in Port Charles, Thompson earned five Daytime Emmy nominations and countless fans for playing half of the popular supercouple “Scrubs” opposite Kimberly McCullough (ex-Robin). But eventually, he came to realize that he needed a change. And that led him to take over the role of Billy Abbott on THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS.
“I didn’t know if I could even do something different,” the actor confided. “I know it’s a little bit of a lateral move to go from GH to Y&R, but Billy’s a pretty different character. It’s a different set, it’s a different setup, and it’s getting a little uncomfortable again, but I needed to change up personally and emotionally for myself.”
Of course, when he was first in talks to join the cast of Y&R, he thought he was going to be playing a completely different character. It wasn’t until he was talking to Steve Burton (ex-Dylan, Y&R; ex-Jason, GH) on the phone that his pal let slip that they wanted him to play the legacy character of Billy Abbott!
“I came in and met everybody and I feel just genuinely lucky and fortunate to be in that position because it’s a great group of people and they have been from day one,” Thompson said. “So it was a pretty interesting transition, but the day that I arrived, it felt right and I was really excited about earning the opportunity to play this character and to do it justice.”
And not only has he earned legions of CBS soap fans now, but Thompson has also garnered two more Emmy nods, taking home the trophy for Outstanding Lead Actor in 2020! So we’d say he’s definitely doing it justice!
