“I think it’s satisfying.”
Emmerdale star James Chase has spoken about Tom and Belle King’s domestic abuse plot reaching its conclusion this month.
The long-running storyline comes to an end in a fortnight’s time, as for the disturbing crimes he committed against Belle.
While Emmerdale bosses haven’t given away the outcome of the trial, they’ve promised that Belle will “be in a much better place” by Christmas.
Asked whether he’s pleased with how the story ends, James replied: “I am, yes. I think it was the right decision. I think it’s satisfying but still an interesting way of going about it.
“How we get to that end point, it’s not just cut and dry. It is an interesting way of doing it.
“It has been all amazing, and I think the way it’s going to wrap up is going to be very satisfying for people to see. Ending it in a court was cool – ending it in a big venue, a place I’ve never been in real life.
“I think it helped me feel like Tom, to be somewhere so grandiose. I have never been in a courtroom in real life and perhaps Tom hasn’t either, so it helped me feed into that nervousness he would be feeling, even though he wouldn’t show it.”
Reflecting on the journey so far, James continued: “It has been a rollercoaster. It has been a long journey, a marathon as we have had a lot of long days and a lot of very intense scenes.
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“But I’m really proud of both of us and, obviously, everyone that was involved, as we have such a great crew, directors, cameras, sound, producers and writers. I’m really proud of what we’ve done and especially some of those interesting bigger special episodes that we did.
“It has been a joy to work with Eden [Taylor-Draper, who plays Belle], who has been amazing in this. She’s so hard-working and the level of emotion she can bring to the scenes.
“In fact, everyone I’ve worked with has been amazing – Nick Miles [who plays Jimmy], Nicola Wheeler [who plays Nicola]. To have my own little family was a truly lovely thing that felt like I had a real uncle and aunt. But when it came down to it – it was just me and Eden together at the heart of it.”
Tom and Belle’s storyline has been Emmerdale‘s biggest of the year. Producers were keen to reflect similar real-life situations by telling the story over a long period of time, leaving fans desperate to see Tom’s comeuppance.
Asked how fans react to him in real life, James replied: “People are really lovely. I have heard horror stories of other people playing villains in soaps and they’ve been given a lot of hassle or grief. I even heard someone was attacked on a train, but I’ve not experienced any bad feeling, as people have been lovely.
“It’s strange being recognised. It takes a bit of getting used to. Before playing Tom in Emmerdale, I wasn’t really known so it takes a bit of adjustment.
“I get recognised pretty much every day but people are nice. They tend to just say ‘Hey, you’re Tom’ and we have a photo but I must say people seem to separate me from the character. I have enjoyed playing a villain, it is fun.”
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