Stephen Wyman

Co-executive producer Stephen Wyman gives the low down on fan's most burning questions:

Digest: When does the serial-killer kick in?

Wyman: I think you'll realize in retrospect that you've been seeing it all along. For me, the emotional kickoff to it, by coincidence, is a show I directed, which was the fashion show (August 8).

Digest: Why are you telling a serial-killer story? What's the value in it?

Wyman: My experience with Jim (E. Reilly, headwriter/consulting producer) is that he is a highly, highly original writer. It's a mistake to just take a storyline of his that looks like it has the attributes of a certain genre, like a serial-killler story, and think it's going to be just another one of those. There is more to this than meets the eye. The idea that for the sake of one thing or another, he would have a serial killer loose and start wacking people, that's just not the way he writes. It would be a mistake to think that you already know what's going to happen.

Digest: Is this going to be a long-running storyline?

Wyman: Yes, we think the story has legs.

Digest: What about rumors of more cast cutting?

Wyman: Another mistake would be to think that the stories we tell are driven by bugetary issues. If you wanted to cut the cast, you could always have a flood and then when it dries out, only half the people are there. The reason we're telling this story is because it's going to be a sensational, exciting story. Again, the business about cast cutting... I wouldn't jump to conclusions about that.

Digest: So, maybe what's been reported numerically isn't accurate?

Wyman: I had a meeting with the cast and crew on Friday. One of the things I said to them was, "There are lots of rumors going around about numbers of people who are going to die and smaller numbers of people who might be new characters, such as Judi Evans (as Bonnie). And Jim Reilly is the absolute most secretive writer I've ever worked with. Down the line something approaching those numbers might be the truth, but anyone who tells you right now that they know it is full of baloney."

Digest: What can you say about why beloved veterans like Matthew Ashford (Jack), James Reynolds (Abe) and Suzanne Rogers (Maggie) were let go?

Wyman: Well, first of all, you're talking about three people who are, in my view, at the top of their profession. The main thing to keep in mind here is don't think you know everything about the story just because it looks like the story fits into a certain genre. The reason these people were let go is because they played characters (who fit into a certain storyline). I think you need to make a distinction in your mind between that and letting someone go because we didn't like working with them or they weren't good actors.

Digest: Fans think Matt got fired because Jim hates him. What do you think?

Wyman: We have to stamp that out because it's absolutely not true. I have great confidence that Jim is evaluating everything on the basis of what's going to make a great story. There's an awful lot at stake for Jim and it is very demeaning to him to think he'd allow personal motives or personal likes and dislikes of the actors to come into play here. There's way too much at stake for that.

Digest: Are new characters that Jim didn't create in danger?

Wyman: With Jim coming on, there are a new rumors flying. One was that Jim would be more likely to get rid of the newer characters created by Tom Langan (former executive producer/head writer). And he would have a greater interest in the characters he's created. Well, what's the first thing he does? Bring in Mimi's mother. Mimi was created by Tom Langan. Obviously, when your mother comes on the show, that's a good sign. When Jim came on the show, the very first thing he did was request detailed biolographies of all the character he had not created so he could learn them. That's a rumor I want to put to rest.

Digest: Speaking of Judi, why isn't she playing Adrienne?

Wyman: The goal was to bring on the character of Bonnie Lockhart. It did not start with a desire to bring Judi Evans back. What happened was that out of respect for her and because she had been on the show, we included her in the auditions, which included maybe 15 extremely good actresses. Judi won the role. It's as simple as that. The reason she won that role is the character is a mixture between scheming and vulnerable. Judi brings tremendous humanity to any role she plays. She did that for Adrienne. She's the right actress to play the role, whether she's been on the show before or not.

Digest: Last Friday, we learned that Stefano is alive. What can we expect in that story?

Wyman: One focus in this particular beat of the story isn't Stefano so much as Stefano's effect on Tony. That's the best way to put it.

Digest: Kirsten Storms is leaving to film another ZENON movie. How will you write her out?

Wyman: We are able to pre-tape quite a bit, o she will not be off the canvas for the time it takes her to do ZENON There might be a week or two when she's a little lighter and is only on phone calls or something like that but because of our new editing system, we're able to keep the characters on the air.