John Ross Ewing III is a fictional character from the American prime time soap opera Dallas and its 2012 continuation series.

The continuation series focuses on John Ross's feud with his cousin Christopher as they disagree over how to restore the Ewing name to its former glory.

With the death of Larry Hagman and his character J.R. in 2012 and 2013, respectively, Henderson's John Ross is pushed to the forefront as the main protagonist of the series.

[1] TV Source viewed Henderson's John Ross as an "arrogant playboy that's been slightly humbled by his previous mistakes," which makes him smarter about his choices.

[6] John Ross harbors some resentment towards both of his parents: towards J.R. for not having been around much when he was young, and towards Sue Ellen for having kept him tucked away in boarding schools for most of his life.

[11] The character appears on-screen as an infant on September 21, 1979, in the episode "Whatever Happened to Baby John?, Part 1", portrayed by Tyler Banks.

Henderson went in for the first audition with his own idea about what the character would be like in the present day, he was quickly offered a screen test and immediately cast in the role.

[18] With John Ross "stuck in his father's old-school ways," and Christopher's new innovative approach, their being on opposing sides provides "great intensity.

In season 1 John Ross focuses on trying to impress his father while maintaining his relationship with Elena and achieving his goal of taking over the family empire.

[21] However, by the end of season 1, the relationship is over and Elena chooses Christopher, leaving John Ross enraged and wanting revenge.

[25] John Ross puts on a "front" as if he tries to convince himself that he is "just as conniving and slick" as his father; however, once he goes down this path, he realizes he needs J.R. more than he thought.

[27] Being his father's son, it doesn't take him long before he nurses his broken heart after his split from Elena by jumping into bed with Pamela, "figuratively and literally.

[29] The following episode, "Love & Family" saw the couple's spontaneous Las Vegas wedding giving John Ross ownership of Pamela's shares of Barnes Global.

[31] J.R. also shows very little interest in the child, believing John Ross is actually Cliff Barnes's (Ken Kercheval) son, due to his and Sue Ellen's affair.

When Sue Ellen later rekindles her romance with Dusty Farlow (Jared Martin), John Ross goes to live with them at the Southern Cross Ranch in San Angelo, much to J.R.'s dismay.

But when J.R. starts causing trouble for the Farlows, Sue Ellen ends the relationship and divorces J.R. She retains full custody, with J.R. seeing John Ross every other weekend.

After narrowly escaping a fire, John Ross becomes withdrawn, and Sue Ellen takes him to child psychologist Dr. Suzanne Lacey (Diana Douglas) against J.R.'s wishes.

When John Ross returns from England with Sue Ellen, he is jealous of his newly discovered older half-brother, James Beaumont (Sasha Mitchell).

John Ross begins taking his anger out on his cousin Christopher (Joshua Harris) and his new stepmother, Cally (Cathy Podewell).

John Ross clashes with his uncle Bobby (Patrick Duffy) when he drills on Southfork, going against the wishes of his late grandmother, Miss Ellie (Barbara Bel Geddes).

After spending time in jail and nearly dying as a result of being beaten up by fellow inmates on Cano's orders for having failed to deliver the terms of their deal, John Ross decides to turn over a new leaf.

[32] Being outnumbered on the Ewing Energies board, John Ross gets Elena's troublesome brother and business partner Drew (Kuno Becker) arrested for unknowingly smuggling stolen goods, allowing Sue Ellen to claim her shares.

On the day J.R. is buried, Bum shows up with a package, explaining that J.R.'s "masterpiece" was to take down the Ewings' enemies Cliff Barnes (Ken Kercheval) and Harris Ryland (Mitch Pileggi).

After Christopher learns that his mother is dead, he gains her 1/3 ownership of Barnes Global, effectively making Cliff a minority owner in his own company.

John Ross and Christopher then learn from a letter that J.R. was dying from terminal cancer, and J.R. orchestrated his own murder to put an end to the Barnes-Ewing feud for good.

John Ross then hangs up, pours himself a glass of J.R.'s trademark bourbon, before smiling with the scene cutting to black and J.R.'s laugh echoing in the background to end the series.

[37] In his review of the series premiere of the continuation, Ken Tucker said, "So far [Josh] Henderson displays the best chemistry with [Larry] Hagman; as son and father, they seem to enjoy scamming others (and perhaps each other?).

Orlando commented that while the characters are kindred spirits, and make a "hot couple," the fact that they had actually grown to care about one another just made the pairing stronger.

"[14] Entertainment Weekly said the couple's wedding was a "shock," even for Dallas fans who'd become accustomed to the show's surprising plot twist in each episode.

[30] Jackie K. Cooper of The Huffington Post described John Ross and Christopher's dynamic as a "hate fest that brings back memories of the J.R. and Bobby feuds.