Hollywood has slowly been inching its way back toward resuming production on television shows and movies, and it looks like long-running soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful will be the first scripted series to get back to work. And because of restrictions that are in place due to the ongoing global health crisis, the show has had to get a little creative.
The cast and crew of the show will be tested daily for the virus, and masks will be worn whenever possible. The show's executive producer and head writer, Bradley Bell, said that there have also been other changes.
"We were cutting all of the kisses, and the shows weren't the same." One solution that the team came up with was to have the actors perform intimate scenes … but without a partner. "They'll look like they're nose to nose, in the throes of passion. But they'll be shooting scenes all by themselves."
However, there's only so much that editing and creative camerawork can do. So the show's team has enlisted outside help via blow-up dolls and the spouses of the cast members. The spouses will be tested for the virus, and if they're negative, they'll stand in for some of the more physical scenes.
If a spouse isn't an option, don't worry: The show also has plenty of blow-up dolls they can use. Bradley says, "We have some life-like blow up dolls that have been sitting around here for the past 15 years, that we've used for various other stories — (like) when people were presumed dead. We're dusting off the dolls and putting new wigs and make-up on them and they'll be featured in love scenes."
This news will probably be welcomed by fans of the series, as they've been watching reruns of the soap since March. But it'll also be a little different. Bradley says the show must go on, and they'll find a way to make it all work.
"We plan to get our first shots tomorrow, and Thursday and Friday we'll roll into full production. Of course, if there are any red flags or concerns, we'll stop. Because safety is first."
The Bold and the Beautiful has been on the air since the 1980s, and the show has a very devoted fan base. The show was originally billed as a sister show to another well-loved soap, The Young and the Restless, and both shows have enjoyed plenty of crossover throughout the years.
The Bold and the Beautiful is set in Los Angeles and originally was largely centered around two families: the Logans and the Forresters. TV Over Mind has a great explanation:
“When the show started, it was not all love and light and happy things between these families. In fact, it was quite the opposite for them. You see, there was a time when they were not a family that liked the other. You see, there was a very ugly situation between Stefanie and Brooke, and it was something that caused these two families to fight for many, many years. What was their problem, exactly? A real fan would know that it had so much to do with the fact that Brooke was always up in the business of the Forrester family, from getting everyone to divorce their spouses to getting Ridge to change his mind a million times about things to getting Eric to marry her not once but twice.”
And as it goes, the plotlines expanded and became infinitely more tangled from there. There are a whole lot of people sleeping with other people who aren't their partners, plenty of drama, and a ton of fighting. But there are also lots of story lines that are celebratory and fun. If you like soap operas, you already understand an essential truth: They're all over the place.
Unfortunately, the show had to pause production again after only one day of filming. While a representative for the show celebrated the first day back by saying, "'B&B' filmed with cast and crew today and it was a successful first day back at work," it seems that the cause for stopping again was the need for extended virus testing.
The representative went on to add, "We have paused very briefly to modify our testing protocol to better accommodate the large volume of testing needed. Safety remains our top priority as we continue to move forward with the production of the show."
The show has identified June 23 as its target date to resume production again.
The current health crisis has caused production on many television shows and films to be totally halted. While it's been a huge shock for both the people who work on the shows and the people who watch them, this isn't the first time a crisis has caused a halt to the entertainment industry.
However, many expect the industry to bounce back heartily once the shows and movies can resume filming. During the Great Depression, one in five Americans were unemployed, but people still flocked to theaters for a distraction. The same pattern repeated itself throughout the 20th century.
