BREAKDOWN

Steve Burton is back as Jason Morgan on “General Hospital” beginning with the Monday, March 4 episode, but it looks like he has blood on his hands instead of rubble keeping him down.

In a first-look photo released by PEOPLE, the outlet reveals that when Jason returns to the canvas, he’ll have been shot for the umpteenth time while wearing one of his signature black shirts and black leather gloves. 

From what can be gathered, Jason is involved in a shootout that ends up with a bullet lodged in his lower left abdomen. Jason uses his right hand to assess his current situation as he leans on a dumpster for support. His ungloved hand is covered in blood.

So what causes Jason’s predicament? You’ll have to tune in to find out, but we think the Friday, March 1 episode will be particularly interesting to watch as things always have a beginning before the ending can be reached.

When viewers last saw Jason, he was running through a tunnel before it collapsed, leaving many to believe the character had perished, although a body was never discovered.

When We Last Saw Jason

 In the following episode, aired on Monday, November 22, 2022, which did not show Jason in any capacity, Britt (Kelly Thiebaud), Leisl (Kathleen Gati) and Drew (Cameron Mathison) frantically tried to remove the fallen debris from the tunnel collapse but were quickly escorted out by Anna (Finola Hughes) and Robert (Tristan Rogers) for their safety, and with the hope that Jason was able to get out on his own another way. Later, they were told that Robert’s men scoured the island only not to find a trace of Jason, which gave credence to the possibility that Jason’s body was still in the tunnels, presumably dead from the debris that fell on him on the Friday episode.

At the end of the episode, The Chariot tarot card was shown in the spot where Jason was last spotted. The card represents “willpower, determination, and strength” or “determination, focus, and willpower.” Essentially, the card is supposed to represent a positive outcome, which was true considering Jason survived the collapse and will be back with his family and friends, albeit he’ll need some time to heal from his wounds.

Road to His Return

In early January, at the conclusion of the moderately rated “General Hospital” 60th anniversary primetime special, it was announced that Burton would be reprising his role as Jason Morgan after more than two years away from the series as a result of his refusal to comply with the then Disney mandated vaccine requirement, with the company denying his medical and religious exemption requests. A few months later, it was revealed that he would be reprising his “Days of our Lives” character, Harris Michaels, in the Peacock original series “Days of our Lives: Beyond Salem” (Chapter 2).

Following his successful reprisal, the mothership series opted to bring the character to its canvas, with Burton joining the show’s cast in episodes first aired in March 2023. By December, however, the actor shared that his one-year deal with Corday Productions, the show’s producer, had been up for renewal, but the show opted against extending him a new contract. Luckily, with Burton now available, producers at “General Hospital” contacted Burton to see if he’d be interested in returning to the show, particularly as the Disney mandate had since been vacated. Burton accepted and began taping at the show’s studio in early February, with his first on-air appearance scheduled for Monday, March 4.

Pulling Double Duty

In a statement released to Soap Opera Network, a spokesperson for “Days of our Lives” said, “Everyone enjoyed having Steve back in the ‘Days of our Lives’ family.” They added, “Although he finished taping at the end of the year, ‘Harris’ will remain on the show for many months to come.” This means Burton will not only be appearing as Jason on “General Hospital” starting on Monday, but he’ll also continue appearing on “Days of our Lives” due to the show’s advanced tape-to-air schedule.

Check out the first-look photo here for a sneak peek at Jason’s new look and to speculate what might be behind his shooting, and make sure to watch “General Hospital” weekdays on ABC. Stream Live and On Demand on Hulu.