Jack Branning
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| EastEnders character | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jack Branning | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Scott Maslen | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Introduced by | Diederick Santer | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Duration | 2007— | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | 29 October 2007 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Profile | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | In a relationship | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home | 29 Albert Square | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation | Businessman, Former Police officer |
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Jack Branning is a fictional character in the popular BBC soap opera EastEnders. He is played by Scott Maslen and made his first appearance on 29 October 2007. He is the youngest child of Jim and Reenie Branning and the brother of Carol Jackson and Max Branning. The character was introduced to the show during a period when EastEnders was being routinely criticised in the media for its reliance on resurrecting old characters. The casting of Scott Maslen provoked some controversy, being the first time an actor had been poached from one mainstream soap to another. It was quickly established that Jack is a morally ambiguous character, with a murky past in the police force resulting in the paralysis of his young daughter. Tabloid media have praised the character for his role as resident Romeo, commenting frequently on his good looks and attractiveness, however broadsheet press have been more critical of Maslen's acting
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[edit] Character creation
[edit] Background
Jack Branning was one of several new characters to join the EastEnders cast in the second half of 2007. At a time when the show was undergoing media criticism for its resurrection of old characters-[1] with the announcement that Patsy Palmer and Sid Owen would be reprising their roles as Bianca and Ricky Butcher respectively[2] - John Yorke, the BBC's controller of drama production, defended the show's ability to create interesting, new characters. He praised the show's executive producer Diederick Santer for his development of new, "strong characters", including Jack Branning, and Roxy and Ronnie Mitchell. Speaking of this new wave of characters, he stated: "It feels like a new dynasty is emerging, which is important."[3]
Prior to his introduction in October 2007, the character was referred to once, a week before his arrival. He is a member of the soap's Branning family; his sister Carol first appeared in the serial in 1993, while father Jim had appeared from 1996. More recently, brother Max and his own family were introduced in June 2006.
[edit] Casting
It was first announced on 13 July 2007 that actor Scott Maslen had been cast in the role of Jack.[4] Previously best known for his role as DS Phil Hunter in ITV police drama The Bill, the media were quick to pick up on the fact his new role was notably similar - with TV critic Jane Simon sarcastically commenting: "What a relief it must be for actor Scott Maslen to get a role that allows him to show off his incredible versatility."[5] Malsen himself pointed out that the character of Jack was actually higher ranking than Phil Hunter, joking: "I've been promoted from playing a DS in Sun Hill!"[6] Maslen's casting marked the first time an established actor had been poached from one mainstream soap to another.[4] Speaking for the first time about his new role, Maslen said: "I was very sad to leave The Bill but after five years I wanted to explore new opportunities. The Bill afforded me some fantastic storylines. I'm really looking forward to playing Jack. He's an extremely competitive man who likes to win in business and in pleasure!"[7]
[edit] Character development
Upon announcing his casting, Maslen described the character of Jack as "an extremely competitive man who always likes to win in business and in pleasure".[8] He mentioned that there would be an "instant attraction"[6] between Jack and fellow newcomer Ronnie Mitchell, and explained that he already had a longstanding friendship with Samantha Janus who plays Ronnie, having known her since he was 16 years old, and being godfather to her children.[9]
The relationship between the two characters developed quickly from friendship to romance, with Janus commenting that due to her friendship with Maslen; "Our first kissing scene felt really uncomfortable, it was terrible, but we're over it now."[10] Several media publications commented on the fact that the attraction between the two characters had been obvious, and bound to develop into more than a professional relationship.[11][12]
As the character's personality developed, questions were raised over whether his intentions and motivations were good or bad, with Maslen explaining: "I call him amoral; neither good nor bad. He gets what he wants out of the situation but that isn’t necessarily just a selfish thing. He’s not an evil character, but if there are people that are threatening him, his business or his family, he will do whatever he needs to do to eliminate that problem."[13]
[edit] Storylines
When Jack arrived in Walford, it transpired he was the last person to know about the stroke his father, Jim, had suffered. In November 2007, Jack bought the Scarlet nightclub, offering to enter into a partnership with Ronnie Mitchell, who had previously been planning on buying it. Phil Mitchell offered to buy Jack's half, but Jack refused, leading Phil to acquire background information on Jack from a contact.
Phil asked why Jack had left his wife and walked out on his daughter, and why his wife wouldn't allow him to be alone with his daughter. However, Jack also got information on Phil, and claimed to know the whereabouts of his daughter Louise. After discovering that Jack intended to help Phil find his daughter Louise, Ronnie told Jack that she was really proud of what he was doing for her cousin and kissed him under the mistletoe. The two became a couple early in the New Year. Jack later gave Phil Louise's contact information, but neglected to tell Phil that Louise knew a different man as her father. The feud between them continued with Jack blackmailing Phil into selling him the car lot, with help from Darren Miller.
On 21 January, Ronnie visited Jack's ex-wife Selina, wanting to know why she would not let him see his daughter, Penny. During the conversation, it was revealed that Penny was in a wheelchair, paralysed from the waist down. Jack later told Ronnie that this was because he had put a drug dealer in prison, who had in turn taken a contract out on Selina and Penny, who were run over by a car while waiting at a bus stop.
Jack went for a meal with Penny and Selina. She visited him in the club the following day and revealed that she was moving to France with Penny. They had a one-night stand, witnessed by Ronnie's sister Roxy. Ronnie returned a few days later, and she and Jack had sex in the office of the club, but agreed to keep their reunion a secret. However, Ronnie found out about his one-night stand with Selina, and punched him. As further revenge, Roxy trashed Jack's flat in February 2008. When Jack found out that Roxy had done this, he handcuffed her and left her in a remote area alone at night.
In April, Ronnie began to fall for Jack again, as her anger towards him softened. They got back together after Tanya Branning revealed to Ronnie that she thought Jack was falling in love with her. Jack is currently also paying Tamwar Masood to help Tanya's daughter Lauren with her Maths homework, in the absence of Lauren's father and Jack's brother Max. On 14 April, Ronnie and Jack were getting "Closer" on Jack's sofa when a phone call from Selina interupts. Since the phonecall Penny has come to stay but Ronnie is feeling uneasy around her.
As the end of April approached, Jack began to grow closer to Tanya, and on 25 April, after he'd fallen out with Ronnie after she found out why Jack had sacked Sean Slater from the club, Jack and Tanya came close to a kiss. Later that night, Tanya headed out to call round Jack's, only for him to be at the club, and confronted by Roxy. Roxy was furious with Jack for revealing to Ronnie about Sean's drugs, but their anger soon turned to passion as the pair embarked on a heated debate. The morning after their night of insane passion, Jack and Roxy can't bear to look at each other. He was later stunned when Ronnie revealed that Roxy was pregnant when he was fighting with Sean Slater. On May 30, he slept with Tanya, betraying Max.
[edit] Reception
Much media response to the character has centred around Maslen's good looks, with the Daily Express commenting: "At last. Someone remotely attractive comes to Albert Square."[14] The Mirror similarly referred to him as "the new hunk on the Square",[11] as well as "the hottest property on EastEnders".[15] Inside Soap praised Maslen's transition between roles, declaring his performance as Jack to be "flawless".[16] However, The Times were more critical, writing of 2007's New Years Eve episode: "The alleged erotic tension between Ronnie Mitchell (Samantha Janus) and Jack Branning (Scott Maslen) was so underplayed as to be invisible."[17]
[edit] References
- ^ Hazel Davis. "Bringing Ricky and Bianca back to EastEnders is the easy option", The Guardian, 31 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Jason Deans. "Rickeey!!! Bianca's back on the Square", The Guardian, 29 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Matthew Hemley. "Yorke claims EastEnders will not rely on old characters", The Stage, 9 November 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ a b Emma Cox & Sarah Nathan. "Cor Bill-imey for TV cop Scott", The Sun, 13 July 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Jane Simon. "Soapwatch", The Mirror, 29 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ a b “Scott speaks!”, Inside Soap (England): 16, 2007
- ^ “True or false?”, Soaplife (England): 38, 2007
- ^ "EastEnders Rob Kazinsky welcomes new hunk", myparkmag.co.uk, 5 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Daniel Kilkelly. "Walford actor dreads romance scenes", Digital Spy, 20 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Daniel Kilkelly. "Walford actress struggled with kissing scene", Digital Spy, [19 January]] 2008. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ a b Tony Stewart. "Sleeping partners", The Mirror, 5 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Grace Dent. "World of lather", The Guardian, 3 November 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ EastEnders Interview. bbc.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ "SOAP: EASTENDERS, 8PM, BBC1", Daily Express, 29 October 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ Adam Luck. "Soap star reunited with dad", The Mirror, 8 November 2007. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
- ^ “BEST first impression”, Inside Soap (England), 2007
- ^ Kevin Maher. "EastEnders; Double Time", The Times, 1 January 2008. Retrieved on 2008-01-23.
[edit] External links
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