General Hospital’s Steve Burton Reacts to 2026 Daytime Emmy Nomination: ‘It Means a Ton’
Steve Burton (Jason Morgan, General Hospital) scored his 11th Daytime Emmy nomination when the 2026 Outstanding Lead Actor were announced on July 13. The two-time winner reacted to the news on his podcast, That’s Awesome.
Steve Burton Says 2026 Nomination Honors Leslie Charleson
Speaking with co-host Bradford Anderson (Spinelli), Burton shared, “I know it’s such a cliche to say, ‘I’m just so honored to be nominated.’ But truly, I’m so grateful to be nominated, so grateful to just be on the show off and on for 30-plus years and to be nominated with the guys in my category.”
The actor, who made his GH debut in 1991 and returned to the show on the same day the nominations were announced after a hiatus of several months, is up for Outstanding Lead Actor against former GH co-star Scott Clifton (Liam, The Bold and the Beautiful), who played Jason’s cousin Dillon Quartermaine; Thorsten Kaye (Ridge, B&B); and two actors from The Young and the Restless, Eric Braeden (Victor) and Christian J. LeBlanc (Michael), who were his co-stars during his 2013-17 run on Y&R as Dylan McAvoy.
Burton revealed that once the nominations came out, “Frank [Valentini, GH’s executive producer] texted me right away. I was just like, ‘Thank you for the opportunity to get to do what I do.'”
The actor also voiced his gratitude to Elizabeth Korte, one of the show’s head writers, and Producer Michelle Henry, noting that they “helped me a lot with the material” he submitted for Emmy consideration, as well as longtime co-stars Laura Wright (Carly) and Maurice Benard (Sonny), and his wife, Michelle Lundstrom.
But above all, the actor stressed that his nomination is a credit to the late Leslie Charleson, who played his mother on the show, Monica Quartermaine. While Burton did not specify the episodes he submitted for Emmy judging, Monica’s death aired during the period of eligibility, and Burton’s poignant work as Jason in that storyline was arguably some of the strongest of his career.
“The nomination’s an amazing thing, and it’s beautiful, but really it’s to honor Leslie Charleson,” Burton declared. “A lot of my material was because of her, and how I started on the show as a Quartermaine, it just means a ton.”
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