Coronation Street Blog: Corrie Blog speaks to bad boy Corey

‘This isn't the end, this is just the beginning’ Prophetic words from Imran Habeeb at the end of Monday night's Coronation Street, and with some foreshadowing, it seems. As Kelly Neelan faces the music, her cohort in the attack, Corey Brent, has also been questioned and released pending bail enquiries. But do we know that Corey did it?! Ambiguity aside, we can be sure that he was the main instigator, but Kelly and Eli also played a part. Is Corey about to accept full responsibility or will he try and put the blame on Kelly?

A miserable gloomy Tuesday it may be, but turning on my laptop to that Zoom thingy, I was suddenly in a suitably sunny disposition and happy to be joining Coronation Street online to learn more about how this hate crime storyline will develop! To kick things off, we spoke to actor Maximus Evans (ME), who plays Corey Brent

Q How is Corey feeling after the attack? Does he feel guilt or is it all about self-preservation for him now?

ME I think there is a sense of guilt, once he released his true actions and what they caused. Yet, I think it's with characters like Asha, and his Dad, Stefan, where we get to see vulnerability and guilt starting to set in. Going forward, we will start to see him comprehend just what he has done and what he’s now facing up to!

Q What was Corey’s issue with Nina that led to the violent attack?

ME I think he has a sense of jealousy towards Nina which stems from the relationship she had with Asha previously. Because Nina is so uniquely different in the obvious sense, Corey is quite a confident lad also and probably feels threatened by her presence, especially when she’s around Asha. He thinks Nina is still manipulating Asha.

Q This week, the net starts to close in on Corey. How will we see him react to the police investigation?

ME I think it depends on who Corey is actually with, as to how he reacts. When he’s with his father, he’s more confident and we see a power shift because he’s had such a privileged upbringing. It will be interesting in the coming weeks to see how he responds to Asha, or how people on the street will respond to him. Ultimately, he’s on his own, so Asha is his last stand. Corey is very controlling, and I’ve seen comments online where people compare him to Geoff Metcalfe and that is brilliant, as there are similarities towards Corey’s control of Asha. Asha does start to back away but I think he may pull her back into control.

Q Corey starts to pin the blame for the attack on Kelly. Does Corey see Kelly as a useful scapegoat to relieve himself of responsibility?

ME The thing with Corey is, he can identify people of vulnerability and who he thinks are below him. Kelly is a great example of that. She was involved in it, but there's way more guilt in Kelly than there is with Corey. We then see other characters like Summer, who he tries to manipulate too. Corey is facing fight or flight and he’s trying to stand his ground for as long as he can and he tries to blackmail these people.

Q Corey is from a quite privileged background. Do you think he feels that his wealth will help him to get out of it?

ME Unfortunately, yes I think he does. He’s got a sense of power from his upbringing, and sadly we do see this in the world today. That sense of privilege that comes with money. We will see though, that Corey is a lot like his Dad, and at times he’s just as bad as his son is.

Q We see Corey get arrested and taken in for questioning. Is he starting to get scared now?

ME Yes, and naturally you would be especially if you are guilty of something, He’s had no police involvement previously so ‘no comment’ is the only way he seems able to react.

Q What future do you see for Corey on Coronation street - will he be sticking around for longer?

ME For me, the brilliant thing that Corrie does is play these stories out to full fruition. The advantage of him hanging around, for the younger audience at least, would be for them to see that people like this do exist in real life. That said, I do hope he gets his comeuppance but it’s just a case of how and when.

Q What has the fan reaction to Corey been like?

ME It's been interesting, I'm not really on social media myself but this past week I've tried to be as active as possible on Twitter. Generally, the response has been quite nice. It's more responsive to the acting and I hope people can differentiate between the two. Out and about, I've had praise for the performance rather than anything else, so it's been good!

Q Corey has no redeeming features whatsoever. Do you recognise his character traits from anyone you went to school with or in your year group?

ME I think anyone that went to high school will recognise Corey as the bully because that's what he is, Corey is a bully. I never dealt with bullies myself but you can see where the influence came from. I try to channel that in the acting.

Q Do you enjoy working with Tanisha (Asha) on those scenes where Corey is nasty?

ME I love working with Tanisha, and we talk often about how or why Asha would stay with Corey! If I have a full day of scenes, and I know I'm going to work with Tanisha, then it's going to be a good day. She’s a brilliant actress!

Q How did you land the job on Coronation Street?

ME Well, it comes full circle. I've had a few auditions for Corrie over the years and got very close to playing Seb and screen-tested when that role first came up. I was saying that to Harry and thought it was funny how things have turned out. I auditioned for Corey about 2 years ago and was already out of high school, the character was younger than me. I’m 6’1 and thought I might look silly in a school uniform, but it has been nice to get to use that childhood innocence in the character

Q Who are you learning the most from whilst working on Corrie?

ME Ultimately, and because we are both huge cinema fans, I learn a lot from Jimmi (Harkishin, Dev Alahan) As a huge fan of Corrie anyway, it has been surreal to sit and have my lunch with Dev! He’s a brilliant guy who recommends loads of films, and we are both fans of Marlon Brando, so he's helping me with my craft, too. I remember watching Sunita’s death, Hayley's death, and being in tears like I was last week. I am a big fan of the show!

Q There is still some ambiguity about the attack, as we have yet to see it on screen. Have the producers told you and the other cast members what actually happened, and will we get to see it soon?

ME Yes, and I hope so. It's been interesting, obviously with Covid and the 2-metre rule, we've had to change the way we film. It was hard to do and I praise Harry (Seb) and Mollie (Nina) for portraying a beating, without any kicking going off. I do hope we get to see the full extent of the attack just to add to that sense of reality and how brutal it is!

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With absolutely no hyperbole, I can honestly say that this past week of Corrie has been unmissable! I’m eager to learn more about this storyline - and that I did! It was great to chat with Max who came across as articulate, very charming, and he’s a big fan of Coronation Street! He plays the bad boy well and gets under your skin, just like Geoff did. Bravo on the bravado, young man!

Keep your eyes on this blog over the next few days, as I also chatted with Asha (Tanisha Gorey) and Kelly (Millie Gibson) so have plenty more cobbles gossip to tell you about!

I am @rybazoxo, your Wednesday night episode reviewer, and all-around Weatherfield aficionado!