Remember last year when Cameron Mathison took Drew Cain away from General Hospital after he got out of Pentonville? While Drew was taking care of his personal business in Australia, his portrayer was taping a new game show — Beat The Bridge — which debuts tonight on The Game Show Network.
Building a Bridge
Based on the hit BBC show Bridge of Lies, Beat The Bridge features a gigantic interactive bridge that contestants attempt to cross, hoping to win money in their team’s bank. Team members only get to keep accumulated money if they “beat the bridge.”
“My career has really been about 50% acting and 50% hosting with reality shows, and talk shows,” the actor/host tells Soap Hub. The fan-favorite adds that hosting a game show is a good fit in that he brings energy and enthusiasm to his new role. Mathison’s gregarious manner makes him a natural to interact with players who are hoping to win some money.
Mathison’s road to game show host wasn’t traveled overnight. “I went in for a meeting with the amazing Shelly Tseng [Senior Talent & Casting Executive, Sony Pictures Entertainment],” GH’s Drew recalls. “That was six years ago. They brought me back in a couple of years ago and let me know I was being considered for another project.”
While the late Alex Trebek broke it to contestants on Jeopardy! when they got the answer wrong, Mathison won’t be burdened being the bearer of bad news. “I’ll tell them the right answer, but the bridge lets you know when you get something wrong,” he says. “There’s a lot of hugs. I high-five them when they get it right. And [my] heart aches for them [when they don’t].”
How has Mathison managed to juggle playing Cain on GH and host Beat The Bridge? “Frank Valentini [GH producer] is unique in that he does his absolute best to let actors out and do outside things that mean a lot to them,” Mathison says. “He knew how much I really wanted to do this, how much I loved it.”
Cameron Mathison maximized his time away from GH to get the game show series completed. “We shot an enormous number of episodes in a very, very, very short period of time,” he says. “I don’t know if you remember when Drew went to Australia after he got out of prison. That was when [I] ‘Beat The Bridge,’ baby!”
Beat The Bridge debuts Monday, June 10, at 6 p.m. ET/PT, weeknights on The Game Show Network.
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