INTERVIEW
By Mara Levinsky
Quick Take with…
Amanda Setton (Brook Lynn, GENERAL HOSPITAL)
ABC
So, this has been a big week for “Chalynn” fans, as Brook Lynn accepted Chase’s marriage proposal! The engagement arc began, though, with Brook Lynn’s grandmother, Gloria, putting some pressure on Chase to pop the question, much to Brook Lynn’s embarrassment. “Oh, she was mortified! She was annoyed, embarrassed, humiliated. I think that was coming from is that Brook Lynn and Chase were in such a good place and she didn’t want anything to ruin that. That’s why she apologized to him; she didn’t want her over the top, intrusive, loud family pressuring him to take things to the next level when she was more than happy and grateful for where they are in their relationship. So, when he did propose, at first she was thinking, ‘You don’t have to do this.’ She really thinks it’s because he was pressured into it by her family. But then, of course, we learn that that’s not the case, and when he showed her the ring, it was the last thing she was expecting! But it proves to her that he’d planned this all along.”
Can you put into words what you think Brook Lynn was flooded with when that ring was slipped onto her finger? “Utter euphoria. Genuine gratitude. She’s pinching herself! She’s got the man of her dreams and the love of her life and the stars are finally aligned for her. And not only is it her first love, but it’s a real love, an authentic love. She can be herself with him.”
What was it like to work on these scenes with Josh Swickard (Chase)? I imagine you both sensed how important they would be to fans and so you wanted to nail them. “Exactly. We were excited that our characters were finally getting a payoff for their love and their connection. I mean, it’s been four years of building [the relationship], essentially since Brook Lynn broke the bottle over Chase’s head. It’s been a lot of push and pull and a lot of missed opportunities — him thinking one thing and her thinking another and the two of them just missing each other. So, to finally be together, to be on the same, and to both want to take it to the next level, it was really rewarding for us as actors to see that for our characters. And yes, we wanted them good! We wanted to make them grounded and believable and also like a real fantasy, which Brook Lynn keeps referring to it as. She keeps saying, like, ‘Dreams do come true, fantasies do come true.’ She says that a bunch after they get engaged, which is quite sweet.”
On a scale of one to 10 — one being super-chill, 10 being totally over the top — how much of a Bridezilla do you imagine that Brook Lynn might be? “Very interesting! I think originally we think that she’s going to be a 10 … but then something changes.”
You’ve been a soap bride before, when your ONE LIFE TO LIVE character, Kimberly, wed Clint, but they didn’t marry for love like Brook Lynn and Chase are poised to do. Are you excited for your first proper storybook soap opera wedding? “I am so excited! I can’t wait. Honestly, I truly can’t wait for these two characters to hopefully have that moment together of affirming their love in front of their loved ones who means so much to them. I mean, we’ve seen Brook Lynn with her father over the years and with her grandmother Tracy and with cousins and stepparents and stepbrothers — she’s such a Quartermaine, and the Quartermaine family is such a pillar in the landscape of Port Charles. So, to see a daughter of theirs getting married to another pillar in the community, a police detective, and to see these two families coming together, I think it’s really beautiful. It doesn’t feel like, you know, two random strangers! It feels like a wedding between them would be two really embedded characters in this landscape who are coming together, and I’m excited for them.”
When you’re a fan of a soap couple, milestone moments like an engagement mean so much. There are a lot of happy “Chalynn” fans right about now! What is your message to them on this occasion? “Well, first, I’m just so grateful to them for watching and for their support and for them supporting Josh and me with this storyline. I’m so grateful to them for bearing with us all these years and waiting for, hopefully, the payoff that I think is finally here! And I hope they they continue to watch and support us and support the show.”
Disney/Christine Bartolucci
Put A Ring On It: Brook Lynn said yes to a lifetime with Chase (Josh Swickard).
Filed Under: General Hospital, Amanda Setton
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