Nikki Sanderson hopes she doesn't get backlash over the upcoming Munchausen Syndrome storyline on 'Hollyoaks'.
Nikki Sanderson
The 34-year-old actress is glad the soap will be exploring the mental health condition - which sees someone suffering with it repeatedly lie about mental or physical illness - and help the public have a better understanding of it, but she hopes people will be able to separate her performances as Maxine Minnever from her real life persona.
Speaking to Metro.co.uk, she said: "I think it's brilliant [viewers are] in on it - they'll be shouting at the screen.
"[Damon Kinsella (Jacob Roberts)] is lovely and he's a character that everyone loves so seeing Maxine do what she does to him will make them get really involved. They're going to hate Maxine! It gets the audience more involved and riled up if they do know - it's more fun for them that way.
"I hope they don't turn on me as Nikki but will undoubtedly turn on Maxine. And rightly so because she is doing a terrible thing but I hope that as the story goes deeper, the audience will also see this desperation in Maxine and realise it comes from her heartbreak and love. Maxine isn't setting out to hurt people at all."
The upcoming scenes will see Maxine telling Damon that she can't feel her legs, but when doctors perform tests at the hospital it's revealed she has faked her symptoms to get attention from her man.
The storyline has given soap star Nikki an added challenge, as she'll be having to portray both her own character, and the front her alter ego is putting on.
She added: "It's kind of like Inception! Nikki is playing Maxine and Maxine is playing somebody else - I'd hate it if people thought Maxine was a better actress than me!
"I've had choices of how to play it so when Maxine is faking crying I am actually crying because I decided that Maxine is a good actress and good at hiding this lie. We've gone for it full throttle!"
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