On General Hospital, Michael (Rory Gibson) is scheming to push Willow into an affair with Chase (Josh Swickard) — who just so happens to be his cousin Brook Lynn’s (Amanda Setton) husband — to gain leverage over her where custody of their two young children is concerned. Soap Opera Digest chatted with Willow’s portrayer, Katelyn MacMullen, about the brewing Quartermaine-fueled pressure cooker surrounding Willow as Michael’s scheming, Brook Lynn’s suspicions, and Chase’s complicated ties begin to collide.
Plan of Attack
While Chase and Willow have yet to cross any lines, Brook Lynn — with a little encouragement from Michael — is still side-eyeing her husband’s loyalty to his former wife. Just last week, she warned Willow that if she did try anything with Chase, Brook Lynn would destroy her. “To Willow, that felt like it was coming out of nowhere,” says MacMullen. “She feels like she and Chase are just great friends and so she didn’t understand where Brook Lynn was coming from and was a little taken aback by it. Especially because she’s been helping them adopt the baby,” little Phoebe. “She’s showing that she’s invested in their family unit!”
But at the same time, Brook Lynn is a Quartermaine, and Willow knows that she’s not in great stead with that family after cheating on Michael with his persona non grata uncle, Drew (Cameron Mathison), to whom she is currently and very unhappily married. “She definitely knows that this family does not trust her,” MacMullen allows.
This week, Michael and his gal pal, Jacinda (Paige Herschell), manufactured a run-in between Willow and a shirtless Chase down by the boat house, and the exes had a grand old time taking a swim together, followed by a warm walk down memory lane. “I don’t know how shocked Willow would be to find out that Michael is setting her up,” muses the GH star. “Maybe she’d be a little surprised, but I think she’s under the impression that Michael and the whole Quartermaine family are capable of anything! So she definitely wouldn’t put it past him.”
Employee Benefits?
Willow and Chase’s afternoon by the lake ended with Willow offering Chase a job as the chief of staff of her Congressional office. When he balked, she only tried to sell it harder — but MacMullen says Willow’s motives aren’t romantic. “Chase has been demoted at the PCPD — and it’s because of her,” the actress reminds, referring to the trouble Chase got into at work when he broke protocol to try to prove that Willow didn’t shoot Drew … which, unbeknownst to him, she actually did. “She’s motivated by guilt, for sure. Plus, if he works for her, he can make more money and have more stable hours, and she’ll have someone she trusts on her staff. It’s a win-win in her eyes.”
Brook Lynn likely wouldn’t buy that rationale — and neither will Willow’s mom, Nina (Cynthia Watros). When Willow excitedly fills her in on her idea to bring Chase onto her payroll, “Nina is against it,” MacMullen reports. “Her mom is convinced that Willow might still have feelings for Chase, so she thinks the two of them working together and spending even more time together will end up breaking Willow’s heart. Willow totally protests that — she’s like, ‘This is truly because I want to help him, I want to help him and Brook Lynn build a family, and I want to get things done in office. He and I are great friends. That’s all.’”
She may be able to convince Nina of her intentions, but Brook Lynn will likely be a harder sell — and as the storyline unfolds, the tension between Brook Lynn and Willow is only going to heighten. But if that means that she gets to work more with Amanda Setton, MacMullen is all for it. “I love Amanda,” she enthuses. “She is awesome! She is so kind and has such a unique and beautiful talent.”
