When Cameron Mathison first arrived on General Hospital, Drew Cain was about as dependable as they come. He was honorable, steady, and, by Mathison’s own admission, maybe even a little too nice. Then something shifted. One intense confrontation changed the character’s direction, and suddenly Drew became the manipulative schemer that Port Charles loves to hate. Mathison recently opened up about how it all happened, what scene flipped the switch, and why playing television’s latest villain has become one of the biggest challenges of his career.
Key Takeaways
- Cameron Mathison says Drew started out “a little vanilla.”
- A showdown with Nina helped change Drew’s direction, revealing his villain potential.
- Drew became the selfish schemer fans now love to hate.
- Fans have hilariously confronted Mathison over Drew’s behavior.
- Mathison calls Drew the darkest role of his career.
One Scene Changed Everything
Mathison spoke to The Becoming Club podcast about Drew’s dramatic transformation and admitted he thinks one explosive confrontation altered his character’s entire future. “My character started off a little, you know, really, really good, solid human. Ex-Navy SEAL did the right thing. A little boring.” He laughed that Drew was “a little vanilla,” mostly serving other people’s stories.
Then came a series of heated scenes opposite Cynthia Watros (Nina). “We really laid into each other,” Mathison recalled. “I think that they saw those scenes and they’re like, he could be a really good jerk.” While he stressed he doesn’t know if that’s exactly what happened behind the scenes, the timing certainly lined up.
From there, Drew changed almost overnight. “He just changed on a dime, became like a total jerk,” Mathison said. “He’s not a good human. He’s very selfish. He’s manipulative. He’ll do anything to get ahead.” Suddenly, Drew wasn’t the reliable hero anymore. He was the guy nobody in Port Charles wanted to trust.
Fans Love to Hate Drew
Mathison laughed that people have become surprisingly creative about expressing their hatred for Drew. Grocery store produce has been launched in his direction, strangers have scolded him in public, and his Instagram comments aren’t always for the faint of heart. That’s the downside of playing a soap villain a little too convincingly.
For the most part, Mathison takes it all with a shrug. He said viewers usually separate the actor from the character, although he laughed that social media doesn’t always get the memo. When people are wishing Drew would disappear forever, the lines can blur a little.
That said, he wouldn’t trade the experience. Mathison called Drew the darkest role of his career and said exploring that side of the character became surprisingly therapeutic after a difficult stretch in his own life. It’s a long way from the Drew who first arrived in Port Charles, but it has clearly become the version he enjoys playing the most.
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