Soap Hub Performer of the Week The Bold and the Beautiful: Matthew Atkinson

The choice for outstanding performer on The Bold and the Beautiful this week was pretty clear. Matthew Atkinson takes the honors for the second week in a row as he continues to take his character, Thomas Forrester, to some dark and dangerous places as the Forrester heir’s mental condition deteriorates.

Matthew Atkinson Shines In Darkness

Thomas’s interactions with the Hope (Annika Noelle) mannequin started out with him using the inanimate object as a sounding board. But as their “conversations” continued, Thomas started to convince himself that the mannequin is talking back to him, feeding his belief that Hope doesn’t want Liam (Scott Clifton) – she wants Thomas.

On one hand, this is music to Thomas’s ears, but there’s a part of him that knows none of this is real. After Thomas leaves his apartment and the Hope mannequin behind, he rejoins the real world, interacting with relatives and colleagues at Forrester Creations and other places. He walks a tightrope as he tries to convince everyone that he’s feeling fine and is in control of his emotions.

Thomas believed that the real Hope asked him to say at Forrester when, in fact, she had said nothing. At first, Thomas’s fascination with a Hope mannequin, used for the Hope for the Future promotions, was shocking. Did it tie into the show using dolls for kissing scenes in light of COVID-19 safety protocols?

The short answer is partially, but the show didn’t select just any character with whom to tell this story. Ever since the death of Caroline (Linsey Godfrey), the mother of their son Douglas (Henry Joseph Samiri), Thomas has been searching for something to fill a void in his life.

His fascination with re-winning Hope’s heart and having her step in as surrogate mother to Douglas already sent the character over the edge. After that plan was exposed and Thomas walked out of the Forrester mansion in disgrace, he kept a low profile. It was a mistake to think that he was using that time away to get better.

Thomas has got it all going on — on the outside with looks, money, and wit. These qualities allow him to keep a façade going on that he’s doing well. But, of course, he’s not. Viewers saw at the end of last week that the Hope mannequin is not giving up trying to control Thomas – or at least, that’s what he’s convinced himself is happening.

This edgy, watercooler storyline is likely going to continue to take twists and turns as Thomas tries to do battle not with Liam (Scott Clifton) or his father Ridge (Thorsten Kaye) but with his inner demons. Kudos to Matthew Atkinson for taking Thomas to places rarely seen in scripted television. The Bold and the Beautiful airs weekdays on CBS. Check local listings for air times.