Kai Owen has teased his ‘Hollyoaks’ character will be involved in some "very dark" scenes upon his return.
The 43-year-old star is to reprise his role as evil Pete Buchanan, who is in prison after sexually abusing Cleo McQueen (Nadine Mulkerrin), when he comes face-to-face with her partner Joel Dexter – played by Rory Douglas-Speed, her real-life boyfriend – and he looks set to cause problems for the priest.
Kai said: "Pete is a very dark and manipulating character. Those are his default settings, so when Joel threatens him, those defects come out. He spots weakness and capitalises on it."
Rory added: "Pete is a terrifying character and quickly changes his ‘feeling sorry for himself’ act, by ramping up the pressure!"
Despite his character’s dark nature, Kai enjoyed his ‘Hollyoaks’ return.
He said: "I loved my time on the show. The cast, crew, and the whole building are full of lovely down to earth, hardworking, and genuine people."
Rory also enjoyed appearing opposite Kai, admitting he learned "so much" acting alongside the former ‘Torchwood’ star.
He said: "I’d also like to say that I really enjoyed working with Kai, and I learned so much from him. A genuinely lovely man, fantastic actor, and all round good guy!"
Despite the despair of Pete’s return and Cleo’s bulimia, the characters are set for some happier times when they get married – and Rory found the nuptials scenes "mind-bending" because they had to shoot them twice, and it was "terrifying" pretending to marry his real-life girlfriend.
He said: "The wedding was such a bizarre thing to film for a couple of reasons. I was getting married to Nadine, my girlfriend in real life … which was nothing short of terrifying! Also, we shot everything twice, the reality and Cleo’s ‘reality’.
"It was a bit mind-bending to begin with, but we got into the rhythm of it, and a very long day has definitely paid off. Nadine is unbelievable in this special episode! She really is a star."
Kai Owen teases ‘very dark’ return
