B&B’s Scott Clifton and Matthew Atkinson Talk About Role Reversal

Soaps are all about character evolution and change. That’s something both Matthew Atkinson and Scott Clifton are experiencing now on The Bold and the Beautiful with their respective characters, Thomas and Liam. Soap Hub recently caught up with the two actors after their recent appearance on The Talk to chat about new directions for their characters.

Matthew Atkinson & Scott Clifton: Good & Evil

Things aren’t always as they appear. Case in point: Liam Spencer went back and forth between Hope (Annika Noelle) and Steffy (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood) for years. Sometimes, he simply couldn’t or wouldn’t make up his mind, frustrating both women he claimed to love. And let’s not forget when he impregnated both women around the same time. Sure, he never meant to hurt either woman, but yeah, they’d get hurt. Even Clifton’s mother weighed in on Liam rushing off to get drunk and bed Steffy after he thought Hope had been unfaithful to him.

Thomas definitely blew it when he went over the top and lied to Hope about her daughter Beth not being alive. However, since then, he’s worked hard to manage his emotions, focus on work, and stay out of trouble. By all appearances, he’s no longer a bad guy. Liam, however, has been trying to interfere in the relationships that Steffy has with her husband Finn (Tanner Novlan) and Hope’s with Thomas.

Atkinson tells Soap Hub that he’s always felt that Thomas and Liam “were the opposite of how they’ve portrayed them. Now, it’s almost as if [the writers] have made the characters what they always were, right? Thomas, at heart, has always been the good guy who just had a bunch of issues.”

As for Liam, Atkinson theorizes, “Liam was kind of screwed up and needed to get his act together. Now, it’s like he actually is screwed up and needs to get his act together.”

“I used to give Matthew [a hard time] because I was so jealous of him getting to do the ‘villain’ thing,” Clifton says. “Now, I get to do it.” The actor is still discovering why Liam’s behaving the way he is now. “Which came first? The chicken or the egg? Did [Hope and Steffy] rejecting Liam cause him to become the guy he is now? Or did they reject him because he is this guy?”

Clifton is as curious as viewers are as to what Liam’s next move will be and why he’ll be making it. “I don’t know what they’ve got cooked up,” he says. “Maybe he’s just been this guy [all along]?”

Check out Clifton’s chat with The Talk about doing love scenes and which co-star likes to grab a bite of protein in between onscreen smooches! (find out more about what the B&B stars said on the talk show, here). The Talk airs daily on CBS at 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. PT.)