ABC
Josslyn Jacks’s (Eden McCoy, l.) and Emma Scorpio–Drake’s (Braden Bruner) General Hospital rivalry has deep roots in the characters’ history on the show, kicking off when they were just kids. Now, the young women are once again in each other’s orbits — and joining them in their new storyline is Professor Dalton, played by Young and Restless alum Daniel Goddard. Soap Opera Digest checked in with Braedyn Bruner for her take on the Emma/Joss dynamic, her real-life relationship with Eden McCoy (Joss) and more.
Soap Opera Digest: There’s certainly no love lost between Emma and Josslyn. What is your perspective on the clashing of these two characters?
Braedyn Bruner: It definitely started as a childhood feud and I think Emma is the type of person who cannot let things go. It doesn’t matter what it is, whether it’s her passion for her activism or whether it’s with people.
Digest: What is your dynamic with Eden McCoy when the cameras aren’t rolling?
Bruner: Oh, my gosh, I can’t say enough good things about her. She is younger than me by a few years, but I would never know it. She is the wisest 21-year-old I’ve ever met in my life. And on top of that, obviously, she’s an incredible actress. She’s incredibly present in her scene work and really fun to play off of, and she’s always open to trying different things. Outside of work, Eden is also someone that I’ve come to love hanging out with, and if I’m ever on a lunch break, I just knock on her [dressing room] door and I go on there and we hang out and talk. She’s just so fun! It’s funny, because we might never be friends on the show, but in real life, she’s become someone that I can just call for anything.
Digest: Now, Emma and Josslyn are in the same class, taught by Professor Dalton, and it looks like they might be vying for the same summer research position. What has it been like to work with Daniel Goddard?
Bruner: I knew immediately from our first rehearsal how seasoned this man was. He just came in with so much confidence and charm. It was perfect for the character, but he’s just incredibly natural and a grounded performer and just a great guy to boot. I’ve honestly enjoyed everything that I’ve had with him thus far. And yeah, the accent isn’t too shabby either, I would add!
Digest: So, Emma and Josslyn did a little bit of bonding when Joss discovered her in the dumpster. Any fun stories from behind the scenes?
Bruner: Oh, my gosh, yes. Before Emma falls into the dumpster, she gets gum stuck in her hair by a child, because she’s doing her community service and helping out in an art therapy class and one of the kids decided to stick gum in her hair. The way they did that was so hilarious to me! Our hair department is so great, and they literally attached an extension in my hair, and then they had me chew the gum, and then they perfectly placed it into the extension. Then, when Eden’s character finds Emma, she points out this gum in my hair and I thought she was so funny in the scene. I thought the scenes were really great.
Digest: Does their discussion of the childhood feud they had change their take on one another at all?
Bruner: I think this is one of two really important conversations that happen between Emma and Joss. Enma keeps calling Josslyn a brat, but I think this conversation starts the ball rolling of Emma starting to see that maybe Josslyn is not that girl that she thought she was, that Josslyn has matured and has been through a lot, and it makes Emma realize, “I really maybe do need to move on from this [outdated opinion of Joss].”
Digest: Were you guys cracking up in your first scenes with Daniel Goddard? It was pretty funny to me how Joss was vying for Professor Dalton to take notice of her when his focus was clearly all on Emma.
Bruner: Oh, absolutely. Anytime we are in a rehearsal, really, Eden and I are just cracking up, and Daniel is such a charming presence, but he can also get down with our goofy humor, which is really nice. So, now we have fun with him in rehearsal, as well. We were all just having a really great time.
ABC
Gumming Up The Works: No actual tresses of Braedyn Bruner’s hair were harmed during filming when Emma had a run-in with some chewing gum.
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