Victor turned Matt into his personal pawn and prisoner on The Young and the Restless. Instead of taking his life, Victor’s decision to mentally torture a recovering Matt was a masterclass in the game of psychological warfare.
Key Takeaways
- Matt was trapped in Victor’s gym while recovering from amnesia.
- Suddenly, flashbacks from his dark past haunted him.
- Matt admitted remorse for the crimes he committed against the Newman family.
Behind Victor’s Clever Psychological Experiment
Victor (Eric Braeden) made the difficult decision to keep Matt (Roger Howarth). He needed him right where he wanted him, which was in his gym. Matt just saved Nick (Joshua Morrow), a move the Newmans didn’t expect.
Victor turned his personal gym into Matt’s mental prison. Locking Matt in the Newman ranch forces him to live under constant surveillance. After venturing to Noah’s Shadow Room clone, he regained his memories, and it wasn’t the reaction that Victor anticipated.
Matt painfully recalled the torture he caused the Newmans. Rather than ending Matt’s suffering, Victor ensured that Matt was kept in a perpetual state of fear, much like his family was for decades. This could be one of Victor’s best punishments yet, since it’s highly calculated and doesn’t require any work on his part.
How Victor Could Get Leverage
Stuck in Victor’s gym, Matt’s recovered memories forced him to confront his dark past. As he pleaded for forgiveness, Matt distanced himself from his evil actions. However, Victor could weaponize this plea and turn Matt’s emotional guilt into valuable leverage.
Victor mastered the art of pulling strings of his enemies in Genoa City. When Matt seeks absolution, Victor positions himself to control the narrative. Matt wants to prove his redemption and avoid returning to his dangerous past. One option is for Victor to coerce him into executing illegal tasks that he didn’t want to handle himself.
Matt could become one of his henchmen. Victor could also use Matt’s past crimes to manipulate the Newmans’ current situation, either to protect his own interests or to maneuver against adversaries such as Phyllis (Michelle Stafford).
Can Matt Clark Be Redeemed?
Matt’s sudden remorse has Y&R fans wondering whether Matt will get a redemption arc. Y&R’s head writer, Joshua Griffith, surprisingly shared that the villain was redeemable. Like the fans, Griffith became a fan of Howarth’s acting. He came up with ways to keep the General Hospital alum on the canvas for as long as possible.
“How can we reinvent him in a way that he can still be potentially threatening and a potential danger to the people around him, but redeem him from the horrible, horrible things that he’s done in the past?” Griffth told Soap Opera Digest.
Matt’s amnesia kick-started the journey. As he regains his memories, he will try to reinvent himself and prove that he’s not that man anymore. Once again, Victor wins, but maybe he also finds a new ally he can use to his advantage.
