Harry Visinoni says filming the modern slavery storyline in ‘Coronation Street’ has been "intense".
The 20-year-old actor plays Seb Franklin in the ITV soap, and his character is currently embroiled in a harrowing sex trafficking storyline in which his crush Alina Pop (Ruxandra Porojnicu) is in a situation of "forced labour".
And Harry has now said shooting the scenes – which will see Seb brutally beaten by slavery ring boss Nikolai – has been tough, though he feels "privileged" to be "trusted with a real issue".
He said: "I have enjoyed working on this storyline the most because it’s been a privilege to be trusted with a real issue like this. I’ve loved working with everyone on this storyline and the scripts have been intense."
The actor says modern slavery is a "bigger issue" than is commonly known, and believes it’s important that soaps like ‘Corrie’ tackle the topic.
He added: "I knew that modern day slavery went on and that it was a bigger issue than was commonly known. I was pretty aware of it and I’ve heard of these situations happening before even though it’s not really something that people realise is all around."
Seb’s storyline will see him beaten by Nikolai when he heads to the nail bar where Alina works – which is a front for the slavery ring – to meet his crush, but he is confronted by the henchman instead.
After being left for dead, Jan Loskinski (Piotr Baumann) – whom viewers recently learned is involved in the ring – drives an unconscious Seb to the hospital and leaves him at the entrance to A&E before speeding off.
‘Coronation Street’ bosses have been working closely with the Salvation Army on the storyline, and Harry says he’s had "positive feedback" from fans.
He said: "People have said that they are really enjoying the storyline so I have had a lot of positive feedback. Seb is not a moody teenager anymore so people have seen a different side to his character."
Harry Visinoni: Coronation Street’s slavery storyline is ‘intense’
