Johnny Zacchara (Brandon Barash)

John Anthony "Johnny" Zacchara is a fictional character on the ABC soap opera, General Hospital. Within the series, he is the son of notorious NYC crime lord, Gino Soleito and the women he thought was is sister, Claudia Zacchara. He is also a member of the Zacchara organization, previously run by his grandfather, Anthony Zacchara (although, Anthony was thought to be his father until early 2012). The role was portrayed by Brandon Barash from 2007-13.

Casting and reception
Brandon Barash first appeared in the contract role of Johnny Zacchara on September 18, 2007. Barash revealed that he auditioned for the role with costar Julie Marie Berman (Lulu Spencer). Brandon Barash ranked at #9 on Daytime Confidential's list of the "Top 10 Newcomers of 2007." The post applauded Barash for being one of the most talented newcomers and sharing chemistry with all of his costars. In July 2008, Barash ranked at #25 on TV Guide's list of "Soap's Sexiest Men."

In the spring of 2012 rumors began circulating that Barash had been let go from the series. The speculation was so strong that some of Barash's own cast mates began to express concern and support when fans started a petition to save the actor's job on Twitter. The show's newly installed executive producer, Frank Valentini later took to Twitter himself to dispel the rumors of Barash's firing. After almost a year of denying rumors, Barash revealed at a fan event in late January 2013 that he had filmed his last scenes. Barash finally confirmed his departure via Twitter on March 5, 2013. His last appearance was May 13, 2013.

On November 10, 2014, it was announced that Barash would be returning to the show as Johnny.

Characterization
“It's hard to have a good relationship with your father when the guy tried to kill you. Johnny lost his mother at age nine when she saved him from being shot by his unstable father, Anthony. Now finally free of his sheltered life, he's determined to put his toxic family legacy behind him, no matter what the cost. Did we mention he defines the term "bad boy"?”

Upon his introduction in 2007, the character of Johnny is described as the volatile loose canon son of mob boss, Anthony Zacchara (Bruce Weitz). The handsome, troubled, Johnny, described as a "bad boy with a good heart" is torn between staying loyal to his family and trying to maintain a sense of normalcy so that he can have a love life. During an interview with BuddyTV, Barash admitted that playing Johnny often felt like playing two roles. "There are so many layers to Johnny. You see one thing on the exterior, but there's so much going on underneath all that." An interview with Soap Town USA listed the similarities between Barash and his character as "handsome, driven, well-layered and well-spoken." Barash also described Johnny as "brooding" and that Johnny always carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. As of 2008, Barash observed Johnny as being "volatile" and almost "childish" in a lot of ways. Johnny is both sure and unsure of what he wants in life.

Storylines
Johnny is first introduced as a troubled young man, when he meets Lulu Spencer, the girlfriend of Logan Hayes. For years, Johnny has been looked after by lawyer Trevor Lansing, because Johnny witnessed his insane father, Anthony, shoot his mother, Maria. Anthony now obsessed with keeping his son near him. Lulu continues to interact with the troubled young man, despite disapproval from her friends Jason Morgan and Damian Spinelli. Johnny sneaks into Nikolas Cassadine's Black and White Ball, as his father is intent on killing Lulu to keep his son from her.
 * -|2007-08=

Anthony terrorizes the guests, while Diego Alcazar murders Nikolas' fiancée, Emily Quartermaine. After a confrontation with Jason Morgan, Anthony is paralyzed due to a fall, and Johnny takes over as the head of the Zacchara family. Disapproving of the relationship, Trevor tries to have Lulu killed, but Johnny is able to save her. Tensions arise between Johnny, fellow mob boss Sonny Corinthos, and the mysterious Moreau, who is revealed to be Jerry Jacks. After "Moreau" briefly kidnaps Lulu, Johnny is hurt in an explosion. Though Logan objects, Lulu insists on tending to Johnny, leading to Johnny and Lulu admitting their feelings for each other.

Meanwhile, his sister Claudia Zacchara becomes more involved with the family business. When Logan reveals that he intended to frame Johnny as Emily's killer, Logan and Lulu struggle, and she puts him into a coma by hitting him with a wrench. Johnny and Lulu finally make love on the Haunted Star, and intend to begin a relationship. Sonny kidnaps Johnny, mistakenly believing he is responsible for shooting Sonny's lover Kate Howard and kidnapping his son Michael. Sonny learns that Michael was responsible for shooting Kate and actually ran away, but refuses to release Johnny until Claudia brokers a deal to use shipping lanes controlled by the Zacchara organization. The siblings are reunited in a waterfront cannery, but are caught in an explosion caused by Diego. After helping Michael escape from the warehouse, Johnny reunites with Lulu, who ends things with Logan. Claudia and Johnny decide to present a united front to take down their father, who's release from an insane asylum was orchestrated by Sonny's half-brother and enemy Ric Lansing. The siblings also conspire to have Sonny killed, but their assassin Ian Devlin hits Michael instead, sending him into a permanent vegetative state. Believing Lulu can make his son happy, Anthony forces Johnny and Lulu to continue their relationship. Despite tension between Lulu and Claudia, Johnny decides to let his girlfriend help collect information about his father to send him away to prison for good!

From Johnny's apartment, Lulu sees Logan attack Maxie Jones, and when he breaks into the apartment with an axe, she kills him in self defense. When Johnny tells Claudia he is responsible for the death, the siblings attempt to cover up the murder, but Johnny is soon arrested. Lulu begins to become unstable, and she breaks Johnny out of the police station using a gun she brought and pretending to be his hostage. They assume fake identities, but Lulu begins to hallucinate, believing that she sees Logan's ghost. When Johnny learns of the similar circumstances surrounding the mental breakdown of her mother Laura Webber, he takes her to Shadybrook Sanitarium for treatment. Johnny is found not guilty for murdering Logan, and Lulu begins to recover until she sees a note acknowledging her role in Logan's death. With the help of her mother Lulu is able to recover, and the couple reconcile, though Johnny continues to be tormented over his role in Michael's injuries.

Upon learning of his father's role in the second shooting of Kate Howard and his sister's marriage of convenience to Sonny, Johnny decides to sever all ties to his family business. He moves in with new roommates Lulu and Maxie, and begins to search for a job. With no further education since high school and his known association with the mafia, Johnny finds no one willing to hire him, and during his job search he is arrested and charged with assault, a frame by Anthony in an attempt to get him to return to the organization. He is bailed out of this trouble by Lulu's father Luke Spencer, with assistance from Sonny Corinthos. Johnny's frustration over finances and guilt over his role in Michael's coma lead him to contemplate ending his relationship with Lulu. He also considers having sex with Maxie to make sure the split is permanent, but the two are unable to go through with it. Eventually, after accompanying Maxie to an event representing Crimson, he takes Kate's offer of $1,000 per event as Maxie's official Crimson escort.

Maxie and Johnny miss another date to a club opening for Crimson to help Claudia get Ric's stomach pumped after she drugged him. Due to this, Lulu got a call stating Maxie and Johnny never arrived, prompting Spinelli and Lulu to become suspicious. Spinelli confronts Johnny about the incident, stating he will fight for Maxie. Maxie called Johnny who told Maxie to make sure Lulu doesn't know what happened. Johnny confessed to Lulu that he and Maxie had almost had sex during the blizzard. He tells her that he wants to be free to be who he is and that he doesn't want to have to apologize for everything that he does. He and Maxie later meet at the dock where he begins his next move of self-destruction, telling her he wants to burn down his life and does not care, now that Lulu is out of it. He tells her that he wants her. Spinelli later catches Maxie and Johnny engaged in a kiss.

Lulu breaks up with Johnny, leading Johnny to sleep with Olivia Falconeri, who he began dating in May 2009. After Anthony is arrested, Johnny becomes a part of Sonny's organization, despite Sonny's hostility towards him. He tries to prove himself loyal to Sonny, despite all the setbacks. Johnny is constantly covering for his sister, including saving Jason from hitmen sent by Claudia to kill him. Johnny goes to Sonny's warehouse to cover Lulu's new boyfriend, Dominic's, shift during the carnival. Unknown to them, Anthony has sent his men to shoot down the warehouse. While trying to save Spinelli, Johnny ends up getting shot. Anthony is furious, as well as Claudia. He manages to recover when Spinelli calls the police and brings him to the hospital. Johnny tells Claudia to keep her distance from Michael after he wakes up from his coma in the middle of May. Claudia still tries to become friends with Michael and manipulates him to believe she had nothing to do with his shooting. He confesses to Olivia that his sister was responsible for putting Sonny's son, Michael, in a coma, and Olivia reveals that she already knows that when Jerry told his brother, Jax.
 * -|2009-10=

Johnny is upset when his sister gets pregnant to protect herself from Sonny, and tells her she is headed straight for trouble. Claudia suffers a miscarriage when she is run off the road. At first, Michael confesses to running Claudia off the road before running away. Johnny is furious when he finds out Claudia sent Jerry after Michael and tells her he's done covering for her. It is later revealed that Sonny's daughter, Kristina, was the one who ran Claudia off the road. Claudia hates Johnny's relationship with Olivia, and blackmails Olivia into breaking up with her brother.

Johnny is able to figure out the truth, however, but gets nowhere with Claudia confessing. Johnny then becomes manipulative and makes Claudia believe he's reconciling with her so that she won't know that he's still with Olivia. Johnny finds out from Jason that the proof that Claudia got Michael shot has finally been found, and Sonny will be told. Before he can warn his sister, he is kidnapped by Joey Limbo, his father's henchman, on Anthony's orders so that Johnny won't get caught in the crossfire when Joey takes out Sonny. He is saved, though, by Morgan and Molly. After dropping them home, he runs to the Metro Court, where Sonny is having a birthday party for Claudia. He arrives in time to hear Sonny rip into Claudia for getting Michael shot. Claudia ends up pulling a gun and takes Carly Jacks, Sonny's ex-wife, hostage.

Johnny, in an attempt to find Claudia and stop her, goes to the old Zacchara house, and runs into Lulu and Dominic. Lulu ends up getting seriously injured and Johnny calls paramedics while Dominic stays with her. The two of them manage to save Lulu, and when Johnny gets to the hospital, he finds out Carly has been found and brought to the hospital. He is told Claudia disappeared, but he knows Claudia is probably dead. He is visibly upset about this, and tells Olivia that Claudia was the only person who ever stuck up for him. Johnny finds out Dominic is Olivia's son, Dante, and is an undercover cop. He is at an impasse about whether to stay with Olivia or tell Sonny the truth. He decides to let Dante's identity stay a secret so that Sonny will be caught for murdering his sister. On December 28, 2009, an artist, Franco, sends Johnny a picture of Claudia's empty grave, and Johnny confronts Jason over it.

Jason admits to Johnny that Michael was the one who actually killed Claudia on accident. Johnny is upset and hits Jason, but later on, while talking to Olivia, he tells her he knows who killed his sister, but doesn't say who. On January 11, 2010, Franco blows up a warehouse where Lulu was being held hostage. Luckily, Dante saves her right before the warehouse explodes. However, when the cops are clearing out the warehouse, they find Claudia's body, conveniently placed there by Franco. Johnny is upset at how his sister's body is used as a pawn with Franco. He reveals to Dante that he knows who he is, but also tells him he's not going to out him because he wants justice done for his sister and he doesn't want to see Olivia get hurt, either. Jason later asks him to keep quiet about the fact that Michael killed Claudia. Johnny attends Josslyn Jacks' christening.

In March 2010, Sonny is arrested for Claudia's murder. Johnny teams up with Prosecutor Claire Walsh to bring down Sonny. Johnny lies on the stand that Claudia was abused routinely by Sonny. Kristina Davis, Sonny's 17-year-old daughter, hears his testimony and storms out of the courtroom. Sonny is eventually acquitted of all charges in May 2010 when his son Michael confesses. Johnny rails at Dante and blames him for sending Michael to prison and protecting Sonny once again. Kristina, overwhelmed by Michael sent to prison and learning her father is an abuser, turns to Johnny, who conforts her. Kristina concocts a plan for Johnny and her to pretend as though they are going out and are sexually intimate in order to torment her father. Johnny initially refuses to do so, but ultimately gives in when Kristina continues to push the issue, seeing it as an opportunity to get revenge on Sonny for what he did to Claudia. However, Johnny soon realizes that Kristina is taking things too far and manages to convince her to quit the charade. On the same night that she finally decides to quit the charade, they are caught in a car bomb planted by Max and Milo on Sonny's orders. Sonny was sending a message to Johnny to stay away from Kristina. Fortunately, both survive with minimal injuries, and Johnny vows never to see Kristina again under these pretenses.

The feud between Johnny and Sonny continues to grow more and more volatile. After a confrontation, Johnny is shot by Sonny in self defense and crooked cop Ronnie Dimestico hides Johnny's gun that he had in the confrontation with Sonny, in order to make it look like Sonny tried to kill him. However, Jason and Dante are able to prove that Johnny was the aggressor in the confrontation and after this event, Johnny and Sonny finally decide to make a peace agreement. Johnny then turns to picking up petty jobs, one of them being to follow a man that was stalking Sam Morgan and take him out if he says too much or is discovered. Jason quickly catches up with the guy that is stalking Sam and confronts him. Johnny takes the guy out from a sniper position before he can talk and in return is shot by Jason. He has Ethan get Lisa Niles to save him. He blackmails Lisa with the syringe she used to try to kill Robin so that she will help him with his gunshot wounds.

Johnny and Lisa overtime grow somewhat close and begin sleeping together. Lisa confides in Johnny her problems with Robin and Patrick and he somehow gets pulled into her games and schemes. Eventually, fed up with Robin and Lisa's constant squabbling over the syringe, Johnny calls them both to his apartment and arranges a scavenger hunt for it. When Lisa's search nearly causes her to lose her job at General Hospital and delays her greatly, she turns to Johnny for help. Johnny, however, reveals that it wasn't really about the syringe, but to try to get her to finally get over her obsession with Patrick and move on with her life. When Patrick finds out about this, he insists to Johnny that Lisa is too far gone to be helped and just as deranged as Claudia.
 * -|2011-13=

Nevertheless Johnny tries to save Lisa and offers to get her out of the country, when she is facing attempted murder charges so that she could start a new life. However Lisa was too far gone and double crosses Johnny by knocking him unconscious and continuing on with her revenge. Johnny however is unable to save Lisa and months later she is killed. Johnny continued to taunt Sonny and rile him on issues from both a personal and business perspective. Fed up with Johnny, Sonny digs up dirt on his past. On January 23, 2012 Sonny revealed to Johnny that he was really the biological son of Gino Soleito and Claudia, whom he thought was his sister his whole life. Sonny adds further insult to injury when he announces to a whole room full of people the truth about Johnny's paternity at a charity event. Carly Jacks comforts him after the event and the two soon start a sexual relationship, however they do not go public with their relationship until months later.

Sonny is later arrested for shooting out Anthony Zacchara's tires, causing the car accident that killed Cole Thornhart and Hope Manning-Thornhart. Johnny and Carly's relationship was shaky with many disapproving and fell apart when Johnny slept with Connie Falconeri (Kate Howard's alternate personality). Sonny and Carly walked in on Johnny in bed with Connie. Carly, feeling betrayed by Johnny, tries to seduce Sonny, but Sonny backs off realizing that it was not a good idea.

Carly later dumps Johnny and ignores him when he tries to get her back. Later on, Johnny shoots Anthony four times killing him, after revealing that he was the one who caused the accident that killed Cole and Hope and had Kate's alter Connie take the fall, then Heather Webber steals the body of Anthony Zacchara and buries him on the night of the severe thunderstorm. Carly later takes Johnny back and they agree to never keep secrets from each other again, causing Johnny more guilt. Johnny decides to have a fresh start by buying the Haunted Star and becoming business partners with Lulu. He also gives Starr Manning a fresh start by letting her record an album and become a singer at the Haunted Star, which is now a night club.

During the failed October 2012 wedding of Sonny and Kate Howard, Connie interrupts and tells everyone that she can not marry Sonny. It is revealed that Connie blackmailed Johnny into marrying her to keep herself out of the psych ward. To throw more insult to the devastation for Carly, Connie says that Johnny and her have been sleeping with each other behind Carly's and Sonny's backs for months. Carly tries to get Johnny to tell her why he is doing this, but Johnny refuses to tell her. Carly breaks up with him. Later on at the Metro Court, Johnny is furious when he is informed that Carly is with Todd. He angrily walks out when Carly tells him that she can be with anyone since he has Connie.

He later goes to the Pier and finds Duke Lavery. They talk and Johnny wonders why Duke is so interested in working as a bartender and knows so much about the mob. On December 12, Connie has made Johnny's life miserable enough that he wants to confess to the three murders of his grandfather, Hope and Cole Thornhart. He tries to confess to Starr, but can't due an interruption. Then he goes to Kelly's and Carly walks in with her daughter Josslyn. Johnny tries to confess to Carly, but Todd stops him. He then goes to Todd's office (also Connie's) and says that confessing to four murders wouldn't be too bad than the current three. He then storms out of the office.

Later Johnny is visited by his lawyer Diane Miller about possible options that he may have to reduce or suspend the sentences when he confesses to the murders of Anthony, Cole, and Hope. Diane suggests that Johnny give the DA information on a bigger criminal. He says that he could cough up info on Todd's involvement in the baby Switch of Danny Morgan and Victor Lord III. Diane says that it would be a conflict of interest for her to represent Johnny to get him off while also representing Todd to incriminate and send him to prison. Johnny later goes to Michael's to talk to Starr about his misdeeds.

On December 20, Johnny tries to reveal his misdeeds but Starr's father, Todd, is calling people who Johnny would confess to (i.e. the police, Carly, and Starr). Todd calls Starr and finds out that Johnny is over there and he fakes a heart attack. Starr believes this and rushes over to Todd's office without calling help as instructed. Johnny's confession is stopped once again, so he goes back to his penthouse and calls Carly. Carly is weary to listen to Johnny and says that she will consider it. Connie is on the steps to the bedrooms and comes behind Johnny and smashes Johnny with a glass object.

Connie puts Johnny in the trunk and she crashes the car on the highway (of Cole and Hope's deaths) when she sees Ellie Trout in the roadway. Another car consisting of Michael, Starr, Kristina, and Trey also crashes. He reveals that he, not Connie, shot Anthony's tires out and thus killed Cole and Hope to Starr and subsequently to Michael, Dante, Carly, and Todd. Trey and Ellie are transported to the hospital, where Johnny is arrested. However, Johnny is ready to reveal Todd's secrets to Carly and others as well.

On January 7, Johnny reveals that he has eyewitnesses that Todd played an active role in the baby switch. Both Johnny and Todd are transported to the Police Station by Dante and placed in the same jail cell together. Johnny is sentenced to 20 years in prison. Prior to being transferred he gives Starr his share of the Haunted Star. He is seen in Pentonville talking to Kristina on February 15. He calls Carly, but she doesn't pick up. He then calls Connie and has her come to the prison. He informs Connie that Morgan is in danger on April 26. He says that there is a scheme going on in military schools where they get the students hooked in gambling debts. Olivia comes to visit Johnny in prison. She asks him if he is setting a trap for Sonny and he says that this time he's just protecting Morgan.


 * -|Returns=

Crimes Committed

 * Engaged in daily criminal activity as mob boss for Zacchara organization
 * Head of the Zacchara crime organization
 * Accused of rape prior to arriving in Port Charles; the charges were dropped
 * Troubled teen with a history of various criminal activities
 * Blew up a Zacchara shipment [Jan 2008]
 * Assaulted Logan Hayes [Jun 2008]
 * Obstruction of justice; knew that Lulu Spencer had murdered Logan Hayes and aided in the cover-up of his death [Jul-Sep 2008]
 * Arrested for the murder of Logan Hayes; he was tried and was found not guilty [arrested Jul 15, 2008; tried Sep 2008]
 * Took Lulu Spencer hostage at gunpoint and escaped police custody (it was staged) [Jul 21, 2008]
 * Went on the run with Lulu Spencer [Jul-Aug 2008]
 * Taken back into police custody for the murder of Logan Hayes [Aug 18, 2008]
 * Arrested for assault [Jan 2009]
 * Obstruction of justice; covered up Lisa Niles' attempted murder of Robin Scorpio-Drake by hiding the syringe that Lisa passed off to him [Nov 2010]
 * Made Lisa Niles drink a drugged beverage she intended to serve Patrick Drake [Feb 2011]
 * Murdered Joey Bruzetta [Sep 2011]
 * Murdered Rudy Trujillo and drug dealer J.T., but made it appear as if they had killed each other [Sep 2011]
 * Planted drugs in a warehouse owned by Sonny Corinthos [Sep 2011]
 * Shot out the tires of Anthony Zacchara's car [Feb 2012]
 * Caused the deaths of Cole Thornhart and Hope Manning-Thornhart when he shot out Anthony Zacchara's tires [Feb 2012; revealed May 2012]
 * Blackmailed Steve Webber into running an illegal organ ring out of the hospital [Mar 2012; revealed May 2012]
 * Shot and killed Anthony Zacchara [May 2012]
 * Assaulted Todd Manning [Jan 2013]
 * Sentenced to twenty years in prison for the murders of Anthony Zacchara, Cole Thornhart, and Hope Manning-Thornhart [Feb 2013]

Health and Vitals

 * High fever and leg wound after falling on a rusty bayonet [Jan 2008]
 * Trapped in a cellar with Lulu Spencer [Jan 2008]
 * Held hostage by Sonny Corinthos [Feb 25, 2008]
 * Beat up by police [Aug 18, 2008]
 * Sustained serious injuries after being gunned down at a warehouse [Sep 2009]
 * Kidnapped and held hostage by Anthony Zacchara [Oct 2009]
 * Shot in the chest by Sonny Corinthos [Aug 2010]
 * Shot in the stomach [Dec 2010]
 * Tied up in bed by Skye Chandler Quartermaine [Aug 2011]
 * Injected with an unknown paralytic drug by Lisa Niles [Oct 2011]
 * Experienced a fever after ingesting the toxin Jerry Jacks had placed in the Port Charles water supply [Sep 2012]
 * Shot in the chest while protecting Carly Jacks from a bullet fired by Jerry Jacks [Sep 2012]
 * Assaulted by Sonny Corinthos after he learned that Johnny had married Kate Howard's alter Connie Falconeri [Oct 2012]
 * Hit on the head with a bottle by Connie Falconeri and rendered unconscious [Dec 2012]
 * Tied to a chair in his office at the Haunted Star by Connie Falconeri [Dec 2012]
 * Locked in the trunk of car by Connie Falconeri [Dec 2012]
 * Almost smothered with a pillow by Todd Manning while trying to sleep [Jan 2013]