Coronation Street Soap Scoop! Sam’s shock collapse
Will Driscoll will defend Megan Walsh on Coronation Street as the true nature of their relationship becomes apparent in Weatherfield. Despite the youngster being groomed by his athletics coach, he doesn’t see it that way.
Over the past few months, the ITV soap has developed an issue-based storyline as Megan manipulated and groomed Will, began a relationship with Daniel Osbourne and bullied Sam Blakeman into keeping quiet.
Megan’s crimes will be exposed next week however, as Daniel confronts her about her relationship with Will. In addition to Sam, both Lauren Bolton and Leanne Battersby had noticed that something was strange about the pair’s relationship.
Despite her villainous nature being revealed to nearly everybody in Weatherfield, actor Lucas Hodgson-Wale – who plays Will – explained that his character would come to the defence of his abuser, namely because he’s unaware of how he’s been exploited.
In Will’s mind, he’s not a victim,” said the actor, who joined the soap in November. “He thinks a victim is someone who has suffered intense hardship, and since he thinks he’s enjoying this, he doesn’t see the harm.
“He’s naïve to the fact that Megan is scheming and taking charge of everything. He’s just tagging along, not realising how much of a toll it’s taking on his mental health or his family. It’s getting dangerous.”
“At first, he’ll definitely jump to her [Megan’s] defence. It will take him a long time to accept the idea that it wasn’t a mutual thing and that he was actually being manipulated,” he continued.
While Will may back his abuser initially, Hodgson-Wale explained that he would soon feel the weight of his trauma when recalling the situation to his family and close ones, saying he would feel “ashamed”.
“Leanne is essentially family, so he has to be on the ball, but Will isn’t always the most cautious – he’s taken risks with PDA and kissing in cars,” he explained. “He doesn’t comprehend the full gravity of the situation.
“When it eventually blows up, I think he’ll be deeply ashamed,” added the actor. “Not necessarily for the relationship itself, but for the web of lies he’s told his family and [brother] Ollie.”
The star also discussed the process of preparing and filming the challenging storyline, explaining: “I spent a lot of time thinking about the power dynamic. Megan is older, she’s his coach and his teacher.
“To play that, I had to create two versions of Will: the ‘natural’ Will he is with Megan, and the front he puts on for his family. As the story progresses and they start to distance themselves, those two versions [will] merge, which is going to be a real challenge.”
