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Jacob's Ladder

Jacob Young has gone by several prominent names in the soap world: Rick Forrester on THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL, Lucky Spencer on GENERAL HOSPITAL, and now, Adam Chandler Jr. (“JR”) on ALL MY CHILDREN. But don’t call him a recast — or ask him how it feels to be taking over a role for the third time.”I hate that question more than anything, I have to be honest,” Young bristles. “It is not about being a recast, it is about stepping into a role and having passion and giving whatever the character deserves. I don’t care if the naysayers say it is difficult. You go in there, you do the best job you can do, and that is all you can ask for.”Sounds a tad defensive for an actor who already conquered a skeptical audience when he took over GH’s Lucky from fan fave Jonathan Jackson, even winning a Daytime Emmy in 2002. (Young won’t have to jump any such hurdle as JR No. 7.) But chatting with Young, it becomes clear that the actor simply doesn’t have patience for anyone resistant to change. “I am young, I am rambunctious, I am full of life. Nobody is going to hold me down,” he declares. “I want to explore, try things, get my hands on everything. I am always moving.”So why is it that Young is back on daytime after leaving GH only last January, supposedly to pursue film work? It seems there was more to his decision to leave GH than he said at the time. “Not enough money, to be completely blunt,” he reveals now. “My contract was up and they didn’t offer me a very good contract to stay. So I was like, ‘I’ve got a film already that I have booked and I might as well do that, see where that takes me for now.’ At least I had some time to do a film. It comes out in February, a nationwide release (The Girl Next Door, starring 24’s Elisha Cuthbert). After that I decided to stick around, do daytime right. Get proper outs in my contract and after the film comes out, see where that goes.”Though Young had developed some strong friendships at GH, like co-star Kin Shriner (Scott), he had few qualms about moving on. “It was hard to leave friends, but it was great to be like, ‘I don’t need to rely on this show to keep me going.’ I want to go out, try things, do everything. No limitations.”

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