JPI
Things are heating up in the Spencer household this week on Bold and the Beautiful – in more ways than one.
The drama kicks off when Poppy eavesdrops on a conversation between Bill and his ex, Katie, and overhears Katie saying both that she doesn't trust Poppy and thinks there is something "off" about her. “Just nothing very positive,” reports Romy Park (Poppy Nozawa), “and all very much making it seem like Poppy's up to no good and that Bill has reason to worry." Katie, the actress concludes, is "trying to sabotage her.”
After Poppy makes her presence known, Katie confronts Bill’s current flame about why it took her so long to tell Bill he was Luna’s father — and Poppy feels a serious threat coming on. “I think in the beginning, Poppy was just trying to play nice [with Katie],” Park explains. “Of course, I think she felt a little threatened, as anybody would when the ex-wife or serious ex-girlfriend is still in the picture. And [Bill and Katie] share a child. So, Poppy is really, how I've been playing her, good-natured, but she is a little threatened.”
When Katie calls her out, “Poppy’s very non-confrontational, initially, and I think that is [true to] her character. It's something that her older sister, Li, has said about Poppy, that she's someone who kind of runs away from conflict and doesn’t stand up to it. I think that she finally gets fed up and she's like, ‘You know what, I have to stand up for myself.’ ”
Before long, Poppy does exactly that and fires back at the feisty Logan sister. “Basically, she has a confrontation with Katie and tells her what's what,” Park says. “She doesn't owe her any explanation at all. Who is she to ask? She doesn't know her. If she's going to do any explaining, it would be to Bill, Luna, Li, and Finn — you know, the people that she's closest to. But not someone who's constantly questioning her character and motives.”
And while she might not be practiced at confrontation, Poppy is up to the task. “She's a single mother," Park notes. I absolutely think she can hold her own against anybody.”
A Mother’s Instinct
In the wake of Poppy's tense exchange with Katie, Luna can pick up on her mother's frustration, and Poppy reassures her that she will do whatever it takes to keep their family together. “Luna really trusts her mother a lot," Park offers. "I mean, it's the only thing she's really ever known her entire life. She has had to just trust her mother. And I think Poppy has proven trustworthy to her daughter, which is why their bond is so close. I mean, they are more like sisters and friends and can talk to each other about intimate things that you wouldn't necessarily talk to your parents about."
Bill also makes it clear to both Luna and Poppy how much he values their burgeoning family unit. Muses Park, “I think Bill reassures Luna more than anything. Seeing that bond there, seeing that love, and seeing the promise that he will take care of her.”
Trouble Ahead
Despite having Bill firmly in her corner, Katie’s questions and accusations leave Poppy rattled. “She is concerned, as I think anybody would be,” Park allows. “What I will say is, even if Poppy has absolutely no reason to be concerned, anybody who spreads gossip or tries to railroad you in some way, that stuff spreads and has a way of really infecting somebody and poisoning somebody's mind. I think she has a lot to be concerned about, which is why I think she has to stand up for herself and be like, 'You know what, enough is enough.' ”
And Poppy is also well aware of the considerable history Bill and Katie share, and how strong their connection still is. “I think that is because she knows that Bill really trusts Katie and they have such a close bond," Park observes. "He calls her ‘My Katie,' right? It is never pleasant to hear from someone, your new romance, calling the old romance his whatever still. It's very disconcerting. I think that she knows that whereas she knows Bill is his own person, she also knows that he does listen to Katie, and that she might plant the seed that could grow into something much larger. When a seed is planted, a seed is planted. And who knows what that's going to grow into?”
True Love?
There is no doubt in Poppy’s mind that Bill is a man worth fighting for. “Oh, she loves him. She adores him,” Park declares. “He is everything that she has ever looked for in a man. I know a lot of people say, 'Oh, Poppy's just with him for money,' because Li keeps on saying that. She's a single mother who struggled and raised her daughter on her own. At what point were they ever living in the lap of luxury where she is a gold digger? She has sold T-shirts and clothes at festivals and talked about working at farmers markets.”
And while Bill's bank account may be part of the draw for Poppy, it is hardly the only reason she's so smitten with him. “I think she's looking for someone who can really take care of her,” the actress says. “He's strong. But not just financially, but emotionally, physically, you know. And he loves her daughter. He's a good father.
“I've always played Poppy, since it was mentioned from the start, that she had a propensity to be attracted to older, richer men,” Park continues. “Psychologically, she must have some father issues. That's what you would look for: You would look for somebody who would take care of you. She's looking for something that didn't fulfill her as a child. And I think Bill just ticks all the boxes for her."
Fighting Words
Bill does his best to allay Poppy's Katie-related anxiety, telling her that his former wife is harmless. "I think she believes that Bill believes it," Park says. "But I don't think that she believes Katie is harmless."
Especially when, the next time Katie and Poppy meet, Katie comes armed with questions pertaining to the real elephant in the room: Poppy’s true history with Tom. Park teases that Poppy will have a strong reaction to this line of inquiry. “Poppy, who doesn't know Katie very well, apart from being Bill's ex, thinks it's really none of her business. It's nobody's business. And she's not willing to share that with anybody who isn't involved.”
The actress attributes Poppy’s reaction to the personal strength she developed as a single mother. Shares Park, "I was raised by a single mother. Single mothers are just used to being independent and doing things on their own. They're not chatty people. They don't wear their stories on their sleeves. They don't feel victimized by it. There's no time for that. They have to be present for their child.”
Just how far will Poppy go to protect her child and her new relationship? It looks like an explosive week in Los Angeles. Who’s still standing when the debris settles remains to be seen. Don’t miss a minute of it!
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