Gary Windass is facing a huge turning point as he becomes a classic Coronation Street villain.
This past year has seen once-fan-favourite Gary (Mikey North) turn to the dark side by covering up his responsibility over the Underworld roof collapse, and then murdering loan shark Rick.
His dodgy dealings explode this Christmas when his dispute with fellow crook Derek Milligan (Craige Els) actually cause danger for the whole village as an armed siege breaks out.
While recently speaking to Digital Spy and other media, producer Iain Macleod teased that the Christmas siege will spark a crisis in conscience for Gary.
"Gary, we shouldn't forget, did come into the show as part of a family that were described as The Sopranos of Weatherfield, a very long time ago," he pointed out. "He was a right little ne'er-do-well. I think we did gentrify him over the years and put him in a metaphorical pair of slippers, but we're rediscovering a bit of what Gary Windass was before he came into the show.
"Having said that, one thing he's never been – and still isn't, in my mind – is an out-and-out murderer. He's not Phelan. He never intended Rana to die. Rick he killed, to some degree, in self-defence.
"He genuinely believed that if he'd left Rick, Rick would have gone straight off and killed Sarah, who was the most important person to him at that time. Those were the worst things he's capable of."
Macleod distinctly drew the line between Gary and the soap's out-and-out killers such as Pat Phelan and Richard Hillman.
"I don't see him as the sort of person who will transition into a cold-blooded murderer at all," Macleod argued. "And actually, Christmas is huge and is triggered to some extent by Gary's descent to the dark side.
"This will provide him with a massive wake-up call, because for the first time, when he sits down and tries to rationalise the terrible things that have happened, he'll find that he's unable to talk himself out of his guilt."
"I think, in terms of what he's capable of, we'll see that," Macleod added. "I don't think he'll turn into more of a cold-blooded serial killer than he already has done. But his experiences and trauma with Rick have changed him permanently.
"I don't think he'll ever be able to go back to being cuddly Gary Windass, who takes Jake to the park on his bike and stabilisers. He'll still do that, but his experiences have changed him permanently."
The producer touched on how the aftermath of the armed siege will impact Gary's budding relationship with Maria (Samia Longchambon).
Macleod confirmed: "Gary and Maria's relationship continues apace and they find themselves in a situation where, as they're trying to work out the ground rules of how they feel for each other – and Maria tries to work out to what degree she can get over the events of Christmas and Gary's apparent involvement in that – something really huge happens that forces them to pee or get off the pot! It brings their relationship into sharp focus and accelerates their love story."
Coronation Street airs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on ITV.
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