Did somebody say "Sweet niblets"? Twenty years after "Hannah Montana" premiered, Jason Earles shares how he developed Jackson’s character, his favorite on-set stories — and yes, he still remembers the "cheese jerky" song word for word.

I’m a pop-culture writer covering everything from TV and movies, to music, Broadway, books, and games.

The second thought that popped into my head was, "I absolutely NEED to reach out to Jason Earles."

Jason did an incredible job portraying Jackson — he brought iconic comedic moments (cheese jerky, anyone?) and had a knack for getting into wacky situations, but always with a heart of gold. Jackson was a deeper character than just "the goofy brother," and the show truly would not have been the same without him.

In honor of 20 years of Hannah Montana and Jason's new podcast celebrating the series, we had a hilarious Zoom chat about Jackson's origins, favorite improvised moments, and his immediate bond with Miley and Billy Ray Cyrus.

Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Jason: What really leaps out to me about my audition is that I didn't necessarily want to be there. The original Jackson had this orangutan hand puppet that he used, and I found the whole thing a bit embarrassing. But there was nothing else going on, so I went in not really caring if I got the part. 

The people in the room were from Disney, and they knew me from Phil of the Future, which I had done a couple of episodes for. They set my mind at ease and said, "We think you're funny. Just relax, have a good time. We're super excited that you're here." So I was just really loosey-goosey and had a lot of fun with the audition. Before I even left that day, they asked if I would test for the network the very next week!

When I tested for the network, I was pretty sure I wasn't gonna get it. The other guy who was testing for Jackson had a full-on, super professional hand puppet that he brought in. For my puppet, I literally just took a gym sock, and I drew two eyes on it — that was the extent of it. But the audition was great, and literally a week later, they offered me the role. It was very, very quick.

Jason: Jackson was way more introverted and socially awkward in the original version with the hand puppet. Around halfway through the rehearsals for the actual pilot, maybe three days out from shooting, we did one scene without the puppet. It was Miley, Billy Ray, and me at the kitchen table, and it was that dynamic that you saw between the family for the rest of the show. It worked so much better than the puppet stuff, and they rewrote it before we actually shot the pilot. 

It still took me a little while to figure Jackson out — whether he was dumb or whether he was just motivated by simple things, like girls and making a little bit of money, but we just sort of settled on a nice, normal, obnoxious big brother.

Jason: They didn't know how old I was when I first got cast. I was in my late 20s when we did the pilot episode, and I just approached it that we're all on a level playing field. The kids have the same responsibilities I do. They still have to show up and be prepared, and they have the same responsibilities. Whether it was the kids on the show or Billy Ray, I was just one of the group. 

It's an interesting situation, for sure. But the other thing to keep in mind is, I looked very young back then, and that's how the world treated me. Nobody was going to cast me in something that was age-appropriate. 

(Laughs) I remember on my 25th birthday, I went out, and I tried to order a beer with my friends. They looked at my ID, and they were like, "I'm sure this is real, but we are not going to serve you. We're not going to risk our liquor license. So you pick any non alcoholic drink you want on us."

So since that's how the world interacted with me, I think there was a part of me that was maybe a little stunted as well, and sort of had a bit of Peter Pan syndrome. If the world doesn't want me to grow up, then I won't grow up. I'll just keep being goofy and silly, while still being oddly responsible in an adult way. Like, I pay my taxes, and I show up on time, you know?

Jason: One of my favorite parts of the whole experience is the chemistry that you see on the show. It came from the chemistry we all had in real life. I thought from the very beginning that all the kids were incredibly funny, and their banter was very amusing. 

I was initially worried that I wouldn't fit into the family because Miley and Billy Ray were really father and daughter, but they immediately just adopted me. I was like Jason Ray Cyrus, from day one. 

Miley is a very spontaneous person. What you see is what you get with her. If I was annoying her, she would tell me. If she thought I was funny, she would tell me. If I thought she was annoying, I would tell her. There was an openness, and you always knew where you stood. 

We felt very safe working together, and that applied to the whole cast. You could stick me in a scene with any of the series regulars, and I knew they would take good care of me. They weren't going to make fun of me if I tried to do something big and silly, and I was going to support them if they wanted to make a big, silly choice. If it doesn't work, that's fine, but if it does, then the show's that much better for it.

Jason: One of the scenes that I'm particularly proud of is in the prank episode ["More Than a Zombie to Me"] when I go through the kitchen door and end up in the pool of chocolate pudding. That scene is supposed to end when I step back through the door, and I'm just covered in the pudding. 

The whole "Give me a hug," and me chasing Billy Ray, and I slip and fall — all of that is improv. We found so many of those moments throughout the series, but that one sticks out. It's my favorite part of the whole episode, and it just sort of happened in the spur of the moment. 

BuzzFeed: Was that a real fall? It looked very realistic!

Jason: Oh yeah, that did not feel good! There's another one too. I think Joannie is over ["Joannie B. Goode"], and they're having a sleepover with Lilly and Miley, and they had a spitting contest on the back deck. I'm leaving, and I walk out the back door, and I slip and fall. I really oversold that — I was probably four feet off the ground, and just landed flat on my back. They cut to Miley's reaction, which is very genuine. There are definitely a few moments where I may have gone a little too hard on the bit and sacrificed the body.

I also really love anytime Jackson got to have a heart-to-heart with Miley. That was always impactful for me, because our characters were so adversarial throughout the series. I feel like their relationship is, "I'm gonna shit on you, and you're gonna shit on me — but if anybody tries to shit on us, we come to each other's aid." Those moments always felt very true to me.

Jason: I am really partial to the Season 1 soundtrack. It's at the core of what it's like to be a teenager, and figuring out who you are and where you fit in. I just get super nostalgic when I hear any of the songs from the first soundtrack.

My favorite Hannah Montana songs, though, are probably from the movie, like "The Climb" and "Butterfly Fly Away." I think Miley really outdid herself in the music in the movie.

With Miley's own music, I'm a sucker for "Party in the USA." It just makes you feel so good when you listen to it. I love "Flowers" too. She's so impressive to me because she dabbles in so many different genres. She's such a good singer and has such a distinct voice that it's like she can do no wrong, no matter what she tries.

Jason: If you go through, I took inspiration from other movies, kind of as an homage to things I love. The "Good day, daddy!" is from Tootsie. 

There's an episode ["She's a Super Sneak"] where we're supposed to be at home studying while Dad is out. I end up on the piano, and I've got a guitar, and I'm like, doing a guitar thing. It's exactly a rip-off of Back To The Future, and I'm literally trying to do Michael [J. Fox]. There's a million of those little things that I would just keep sneaking in there anytime I could.

Jason: Lots of Jackson moments have become memes and GIFs that people text each other. The cheese jerky is a big one, also the one where I eat all of Rico's chocolate, and I do that face with the chocolate bunnies.

Another is the moment with the pogo stick, "I'm Jackson Rod Stewart, hopping my way to history!" There's the "No, no, no, no, no, why, why, why, why, why, you, you, you, you, you" and the mimic fights.

BuzzFeed: Do you still remember the cheese jerky song? Not that I'm asking you to do it for me...

(Jason does indeed remember it word for word, and it was GLORIOUS).

Jason: We had live audiences, and it was really fun. We would do cast introductions, and it was like a rock concert. The place would just explode! One of the first times it really hit me was when Miley did her first tour, and the stadiums sold out in like 90 seconds. That was a big indicator that not only is the show popular, but we literally created an international pop star. 

A personal moment for me was at the gym, maybe halfway through the first season. This very tough-looking dude with lots of tattoos came up to me. He was like, "Hey, man, are you from that Miley Cyrus show? You're pretty funny!" I was like, "Oh, thanks, man. Do you have a daughter?" And he's like, "No, man, I just watched that shit. It's funny." 

That was not what I was expecting at all. The reach was beyond just the target audience. It really felt more like a "TGI-Friday" old-school sitcom — if you were a dad or a brother and you happened to catch it, there was still stuff that you would find funny in it.

Jason: Everybody has sort of scattered to the winds with their various careers, where they live, and what they've got going on. So we don't get to see each other nearly as often as I would like. But I think that if any of us ran into each other, we would always be very excited to see each other.

Jason: The podcast is a great way for me, [Hannah Montana co-executive producer] Doug [Lieblein], and [director] Shannon [Flynn], the other two hosts, to connect with the fans of the show — share our recollections, the things we thought worked, and the things that we think absolutely didn't work. 

It's like a hangout celebrating this beautiful show, and, hopefully, we share some stories the fans haven't heard. This is probably the closest people will ever get to an extended look at what the show was like. I hope that people like it and they come and enjoy and share it with their friends! The podcast is Best of Both Our Worlds, the official, unofficial Hannah Montana podcast.

Jason: What I took away the most from Hannah Montana is how powerful it is to be a part of something that brings people together. We had a lot of parents, even 20 years later, that say, "I really appreciate that show, because that was the time every week we sat down and we watched something together as a family." It was sort of their bonding time. 

One of the things I'm also very proud of is the number of times we hosted Make-A-Wish kids on the set. Their families are going through such struggles, and what was bringing them some joy, and what would make their child happier than anything else, was to come spend some time with us.

I think it really highlighted how powerful it is to give people something positive and fun in their lives, as a distraction, or for bonding time. It really did resonate with me, and it was important to me that the show was received that way.

Don't miss Jason's Hannah Montana podcast, Best of Both Our Worlds, available now. Hannah Montana is available to stream on Disney+.

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