Soap Hub Performer Of The Week For B&B: John McCook

John McCook, last year’s Daytime Emmy Winner for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, has been without a front-burner tale for too long. Now, the original cast member of Bold and the Beautiful is finally getting some screen time as his character, Eric Forrester, spars with his son Ridge over Eric’s place at Forrester Creations.

John McCook – Performer of the Week

It seems that there can be strife at Eric’s company that doesn’t come about from a rival fashion house. This time, the conflict is from within at Forrester Creations. Whether he’s aware of it or not, Ridge (Thorsten Kaye) isn’t giving his father the respect he deserves. At least, that’s how Eric is viewing the situation. The foot traffic that’s been traipsing in and out of Eric’s office supports the patriarch’s position.

“What I deserve is a viable spot in the company,” Eric shot back at his son as he accused him of saying his dad’s contributions weren’t needed anymore. Ridge tried to deflect his father’s concerns by saying that the family had things under control. Eric wasn’t hearing it, stating that he may not pick up a design tool as much as he used to but he’s far from lost his touch.

“You need to be careful, Ridge. I’ve been in this game a lot longer than you have,” Eric admonished Ridge. The family patriarch was putting his son on notice — he wasn’t going to be put out to pasture. Ridge dismissed his dad’s feelings on this along with negating Eric’s response to his favorite stapler being tossed. Eric decided to let his son know that enough was enough. It wasn’t the stapler per se that ignited Eric’s fury but rather for what the item stood.

As the scenes continued into the next day, the intensity between father and son grew. Ridge apologized for the office supply item being thrown out but noted it didn’t work anymore. “Like me?” Eric pointedly shot back with strength.

Eric finally spoke up about something that Soap Hub pointed out at the beginning of the year — the patriarch’s office at Forrester Creations has been taken over by pretty much everyone at the company. We thought it was very odd given the historical significance of the room and now, Eric does too.

“Everybody’s in here,” a frustrated Eric proclaimed. “You and Steffy and Thomas and Hope and Zende and Paris, for God’s sake — Pam and Charlie have lunch in here!”

Eric left out (probably because he doesn’t know) Taylor making work phone calls from Eric’s office and Katie and Carter opted to hang out in there one time after a sweaty workout. “I just don’t feel my place in this company is being treated with any respect. And that’s going to stop right now.”

Ridge tried to downplay his father’s feelings noting that Eric’s office had been a “common space” for a while now but Eric quickly corrected him. “This is my space, Ridge,” Eric said. He went on to describe how his office was the place where he created the legacy that everyone who came after has been living off of. “I’m the soul of this company,” Eric pointed out. “You can’t dismiss me.”

Ridge shot back that if he (Ridge) stepped down there would be no one else who could fill his duties as Steffy can’t design, Thomas wasn’t ready, and RJ doesn’t even want to be there. “It’s going to be me,” Eric countered as the person who would fill his son’s void if he opted to leave. “Everything you learned, Ridge, you learned from me. I built this business. I built you. When people think about Forrester Creations, they don’t think Ridge Forrester. They think Eric Forrester.”

John McCook brought tremendous strength and commitment to each and every beat within these scenes. He didn’t waver for a second in his stance. If the actor had dropped Eric’s resolve for even a moment, Ridge would have driven a delivery van through his father’s argument. We never thought for an instance that Eric still doesn’t love his son — that is evident. However, that does not mean Eric is going to stay silent or passive. That is not his style.

The Bold and the Beautiful airs weekdays on CBS. For an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.

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