Despite the Platt family being a cornerstone of Weatherfield, Jack P. Shepherd is never certain about his future on Coronation Street. The actor shared, “I get a year’s contract now, and it runs out this year,” adding with a hint of uncertainty, “They might not continue it, they might go with someone else.”
At 37 years old, Jack P. Shepherd, who has been playing David since 2000, knows all too well that his character could face the chop any day now, especially considering the recent chaos at No. 8. Jack’s portrayal of David Platt has seen him navigate through flaming disasters, as his character’s adoptive son Max Turner (Paddy Bever) caused a fiery mess in a failed insurance scheme. This led to Max being incarcerated yet again, now staring down the barrel of a six-and-a-half-year sentence.
(Image: ITV)
But for David, trouble doesn’t end with Max’s imprisonment. Nasty Harvey Gaskell and his gang have been reminding David about a debt he owes, ominously suggesting Max could find himself in harm’s way while behind bars.
“David’s frantic because he thinks Harvey’s going to get to Max in prison,” exclaimed Jack, portraying the panic and fear of a father desperate to protect his child from prison dangers.
He detailed David’s efforts to move Max away from Weatherfield, originally aiming for Scotland – but now Max is in County Durham, which makes little difference when Harvey’s influence seems to stretch indefinitely.
“Harvey basically says, ‘You could send him to Timbuktu, I’ll still get hold of him and kill him,'” Jack reveals. As Harvey’s threats escalate, David concocts a desperate plan to safeguard his loved ones.
“The only way to pay Harvey off is with the life insurance policy,” explains Jack. “If David dies, then it all pays out for everyone.”
Seeing Harvey’s thugs getting too close to his young daughter, Lily, led David to a breaking point. He turns to Andy, a hitman trapped in Harvey’s web, enlisting him to take out Harvey by staging a deadly scenario – having Andy run over David instead.
For actor Jack, aged 37, it’s clear where David’s head is at. “He feels like a failure,” he comments. “Everything he does always has a negative effect on the family. He feels they’d be a lot better off in life if he wasn’t constantly messing things up.”
David Platt has had his share of traumatic experiences – from Kylie’s death to his own brutal assault back in 2018, and now he’s grappling with despair again. However, this time Jack believes it’s more severe.
“He has been low before, but I’m not sure he has actually been suicidal,” observes Jack. “This is a suicide but it has to look like an accident.”
Jack, enthralled by the gripping storyline and the thrills of stunts, confesses that he’s a bit of a rule breaker when it comes to safety. “I always push the limits,” he admits with a hint of defiance.
He also revealed some behind-the-scenes secrets from the show’s explosive storylines.
Recalling a recent scene, he said, “They said action, and of course I went past the safety line,” admitting to his tendency to push boundaries for authenticity. “But I’m safe, there are lots of people with extinguishers.”
(Image: ITV)
His latest on-screen drama saw David in a perilous car crash stunt that almost went wrong. “We had a near-miss because I wasn’t paying attention,” Jack shared. “There was a car coming and we added it into the scene. I was looking a different way and it nearly hit me.”
But the actor thrives on such adrenaline-fueled moments: “I like doing all that!”. The storyline took a dark turn when David’s character suffered a severe injury. “David’s main artery is hit so he’s bleeding out,” Jack explains.
“I was covered in blood, it was like being in Carrie!” The show’s commitment to realism didn’t stop there; director Suri Krishnamma consulted medical experts to ensure the portrayal of David’s injuries was accurate. “They said the [hospital] bed would be covered in blood, so we went, ‘Right, let’s do it properly.'”.
However, David Platt wasn’t the only one affected by the hit-and-run incident. Daisy Midgeley, played by Charlotte Jordan, found herself in harm’s way during David’s chaotic moment.
“He’s annoyed to see her, but he tried to push her out of the way,” says Jack, hinting at the tense scenes. Tragically, the aftermath sees Daisy losing her unborn baby, sending shockwaves throughout Weatherfield and leaving fans on the edge of their seats.
The tension intensifies on the cobbles as David’s rivalry with Detective Kit Green, played by Jacob Roberts, escalates dramatically. The pair have a history of conflict, particularly after Kit’s one-night fling with David’s other half, Shona.
This time, however, it leads to an extreme clash. “David thinks he’s going to get arrested,” reveals actor Jack, but Kit has another plan in mind. Luring David to a desolate warehouse, “He starts beating him up, punching him and everything,” Jack discloses. “David’s in a bad way.”
But Jack firmly keeps things under wraps, enjoying the element of surprise: “I like the unpredictability,” he insists. “I don’t like telling fans anything.” Viewers will just have to wait and see.
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