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Miley Cyrus Transforms into ‘Hannah Montana’ in 20th Anniversary Special First Look
Jason Earles kept his age on the low so he could rock out the show.
The Hannah Montana alum—who played Miley Cyrus’ older brother on the Disney Channel sitcom—confirmed he misled producers about his real birth date in order to land the role of 16-year-old Jackson Stewart.
“I was desperately afraid that I was going to be fired and recast because I had a big secret,” he said on the March 17 episode of the Best of Both Our Worlds podcast. “When I auditioned for the show, I lied to them and told them I was 18 years old.”
Luckily, Jason, now 48, was able to keep his real age under wraps long after landing the role, admitting that network executives didn’t catch on “until halfway through the first season.”
“I remember one of the higher-up network executives showed up on show night and he was like, ‘Hey, so you're 28,’” he recalled. “And I was like, ‘I am.’”
But Jason—who was married to Jennifer Earles at the time and went on to wed Katie Drysen in 2017—was also forced to admit another detail about his personal life after an exec confronted him about his relationship status.
Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images; Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
“I was like, ‘Yeah, that girl that I keep making out with? That's my wife,’” Jason continued. “[The executive] was like, ‘Any more secrets? Anything we should know?’ I was like, ‘No.’ He's like, ‘Do you have any kids?’ And I was like, ‘No kids.’ He's like, ‘Let's go ahead and keep it that way for a few years.’”
Fans are likely to learn more behind-the-scenes secrets in the Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special, in which Miley, 33, will reminisce about her breakthrough role and perform some of Hannah’s biggest hits.
“I loved being Hannah then,” she said in the trailer for the upcoming special, adding, “I’m so living for it now.”
The Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special premieres March 24 on Disney+. In the meantime, keep scrolling to see the show’s cast then and now…
DISNEY CHANNEL/ISABELLA VOSMIKOVA/Broadimage/REX/Shutterstock
Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana / Miley Stewart)
The star of the show is still a total rock star. Since performing as Hannah Montana, she dropped Bangerz (2013), Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz (2015), Younger Now (2017) Plastic Hearts (2020), Endless Summer Vacation (2023) and Something Beautiful (2025). She also won her first Grammy in 2023 for her hit "Flowers."
After splitting from Last Song costar Liam Hemsworth, she went on to date Cody Simpson, Kaitlynn Carter. She is now engaged to Maxx Morando.
Jesse Grant/WireImage/Dan MacMedan/Getty Image
Emily Osment (Lilly Truscott)
After Hannah Montana ended its four-season run in 2011, the actress went on to voice characters on animated programs like Family Guy and Rainbow Brite and appear on shows such as Mom, Young & Hungry, Cleaners and The Kominsky Method. Now, she stars in Geogie & Mandy's First Marriage on CBS.
Jesse Grant/WireImage/REX/Shutterstock
Jason Earles (Jackson Stewart)
After Hannah Montana ended, the actor went on to star on shows such as Disney XD's Kickin' It, WTH: Welcome to Howler and Hotel Du Loone. In 2017, he married Katie Drysen.
Dean Hendler/Disney Channel via Getty Images; Michael Bezjian/Getty Images
Mitchel Musso (Oliver Oken)
The actor appeared on the show Pair of Kings and hosted PrankStars after Hannah Montana ended. In 2011, at age 20, he was arrested for a DUI, after which his character was written off the former show and the latter was canceled. In recent years, he has continued to act and has portrayed characters on the animated programs Phineas and Ferb and Milo Murphy's Law.
Jaimie Trueblood/Disney Channel/Matt Baron/REX/Shutterstock
Moises Arias (Rico)
In recent years, the actor has appeared on shows such as The Middle and Jean-Claude Van Johnson and movies such as Ben-Hur and Pitch Perfect 3. In 2020, he starred in the Pete Davidson-Judd Apatow film The King of Staten Island. Now, he stars in The Fallout.
Jeff Daly/Getty Images
Anna Maria Perez de Tagle (Ashley Dewitt)
In late 2011, she starred in the Broadway revival of Godspell. She is also a singer—in 2012, the star opened for the Jonas Brothers Asia 2012 tour. In recent years, she has appeared on episodes of shows such as Baby Daddy and Charmed. In November 2018, she got engaged to boyfriend Scott Kline. The two tied the knot the following June with actress Uzo Aduba serving as the maid of honor.
Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage/JB Lacroix/WireImage
Shanica Knowles (Amber Addison)
After Hannah Montana ended, the actress went on to appear on shows such as Melissa & Joey, The Young and the Restless and various TV movies, such as Life-Size 2.
DISNEY CHANNEL/ERIC MCCANDLESS/Getty Images
Cody Linley (Jake Ryan)
The star finished fourth on the the seventh season of Dancing With The Stars and released his debut album in 2012. He also continued his acting career—he appeared on two episodes of Melissa & Joey and in the TV movies Sharknado 4: The 4th Awakens and Sharknado 5: Global Swarming.
Jesse Grant/WireImage/Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images
Billy Ray Cyrus (Robby Ray Stewart)
Miley's onscreen and real-life dad continues to concentrate on his music career. In 2019, after several country hits, he earned his first No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100 after joining Lil Nas X on the official remix of the record-breaking smash hit "Old Town Road." In 2016 and 2017, he starred on the show Still the King.
David Livingston/Getty Images/Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
Noah Cyrus
Miley's little sister appeared on six episodes of Hannah Montana. She began a music career in 2016 and released her debut single, "Make Me (Cry)." In 2018, she dated Lil Xan and they released the collaboration "Live or Die." The two broke up after a couple of months.
She got engaged to designer Pinkus in 2023.
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