Hollyoaks hour-long Christmas special ended with a shock twist as Will Savage made an unexpected return to screens. The sinister killer was seen in the post-credits scene of the festive episode, writing a letter to his father Dirk to request a visit ahead of his upcoming appeal. Wills reappearance paves the way for another dramatic storyline next year as he finds his way back to the village, which could cause chaos for his brother Dodger (Danny Mac) and the rest of his family. Digital Spy recently caught up with James Atherton, who plays Will, for his exclusive first chat about his return to Hollyoaks. What was your initial reaction when you found out that Hollyoaks wanted to bring you back? I was chuffed, especially because its part of Dannys leaving story. Wed done so much stuff together already and it was nice to know that I was going to be part of it. I was really happy and obviously Hollyoaks has been so fantastic over the last year so its a really exciting place to be part of again. How long has Wills return been in the pipeline for? Quite a long time! They first mentioned it about five or six months ago, so I knew for quite a while that I was coming back. Ive been really excited about it since then. I think Will is such a fantastic character and the way he developed over his time on the show was really interesting. It did feel like he should come back at some point in some dramatic circumstance, where he could revel again! Weve just seen Will writing a letter to Dirk. Why has he decided to reach out to his family after all this time? Its part of a bigger plot as far as Will is concerned! Its him manipulating people again. Even from inside a prison cell, Will is trying to cause havoc and disturb peoples lives - especially his familys. How is Will feeling about his upcoming appeal? Hes hoping for the best, but again its part of a bigger plot. Will is too smart for that to be his only chance at freedom. Hes not going to allow other people to control his life anymore, so he takes matters into his own hands as far as thats concerned. Has Will had time to reflect on any of his past crimes? I think hes spent his time stewing! (Laughs.) All hes built up over the last year is rage and torment! How does Will feel about Dodger? Hes still very resentful towards Dodger. Thats been his main drive to get himself out of prison in any way he can - its so he can try to ruin Dodgers life all over again… We cant say how, but we know that we can expect to see Will back in the village next year. Whats in store? I cant say too much, but Will is up to his same old tricks again. Hes basically trying to bring terror in every way he can. Hes had time to think of a plan and really plot it through, rather than just acting irrationally. Its all far more calculated, which I think is even more sinister… Weve also heard that there might be some more scenes between Will and Sienna! Absolutely - Sienna and Will are a match made in heaven. Im surprised theyre not twins! (Laughs.) Obviously Anna Passey is brilliant as well and really lovely to work with. Its been great since Ive come back, as its been nice to see Will and Sienna having more to do together. I actually think they could work really well together as a team. In his final scene last year, Will had no feeling in his legs. Can he walk now? Hes not in a wheelchair, so hes managed to rehabilitate himself. Will can walk but hes carrying himself because hes got a limp. The writers always like to give me some sort of ailment to carry! Its either that or getting dressed up - the writers seem to like dressing me up as well, so theres lots of that going on too! Were you surprised that Danny wanted to leave the show? Obviously Dan and I are really close friends, so I knew it was on his mind even when I left last year. I know hed been thinking about it even then. Hollyoaks is a great place, but Danny is a talent and a very good-looking boy so hell do brilliantly wherever he goes. Im very excited for him and what the future might hold for him. Youre back on the show as a guest, but would you be interested in doing even more for Hollyoaks in the future? Absolutely. I love the place and being back has been brilliant. Everyone in the building is fantastic - cast and crew. The whole atmosphere of the place is terrific and its an absolute joy to be back. I would definitely, definitely stay. Who have you most enjoyed catching up with? Theres an awful lot of new faces, actually, so its been lovely to get to know some new people. Theres some fantastic additions to the show, even people who had just started when I left like Jess Ellis. Daisy Wood-Davis is lovely and Nick Rhys and Cameron Moore are great. Theres loads of new people who have really welcomed me back to into the fold. Little Charlie Wernham is great too. Its been great seeing all of the old guys and meeting some new faces as well. How did you feel about keeping your return a secret? Its been really funny because Ive been out with everyone at cast parties and Ive seen a few tweets from people saying, How come James Atherton is back in the fold?! A few people became suspicious but I think we did quite a good job because everyone kept really quiet about it in the building. It must have been nice to return in the hour-long Christmas special too. Yeah, that was massive. Paul Riordan who directed the episode did loads of the big stuff while I was at Hollyoaks the first time, so its lovely that he was directing it. Wills return is such a simple little tag scene at the end of the episode, but I think it has real gravity to it as well. Its such a big moment to come back on and hopefully a real drive into next year. Have you also enjoyed the chance to do other work since leaving Hollyoaks? Absolutely, yeah. It was fantastic to work at the Manchester Royal Exchange on a play called Crocodiles. Being back on stage was brilliant because thats where I trained. Its been lovely to get back and do some of that as theatre is my first love. I also spent a lot of time in America doing stuff over there. What are your plans for Christmas? Ill be spending it with my family which I always do - up in the Lake District which is where Im from. Itll be a nice little family affair up there, with loads of food and drink!
Posted on: Wed, 24 Dec 2014 20:19:43 +0000