‘The Bold and the Beautiful’: Is Matthew Atkinson Leaving the Show?
Part of long-running soap operas like CBS’s The Bold and the Beautiful is the fact that cast members come and go, whether the characters they’re portraying go with them or not.
Sometimes the characters get written off the show when an actor leaves, and sometimes they’re replaced with another actor. One character on B&B that has been replaced a handful of times is Thomas Forrester.
Actor Matthew Atkinson is currently portraying Thomas, but fans are starting to speculate that he’s leaving the show soon. What’s next for Matthew Atkinson?
Thomas Forrester has gone through many casting changes
The character of Thomas has been on The Bold and the Beautiful since 1997, and he’s been portrayed by a number of different actors over the years. His mother, Taylor Hamilton, discovered she was pregnant with Ridge Forrester’s child.
The pregnancy was dramatic; Taylor lied about who the father was until she saw that Ridge had an immediate bond with the baby, then confessed the truth. Taylor and Ridge got married and went on to have twin daughters Steffy and Phoebe a few years later.
Thomas was portrayed by Patrick Dorn from 2002-2003, as a child. Teenage Thomas was played by Drew Tyler Bell on and off from 2004-2010. Bell earned a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actor in a Drama Series for the role. Adam Gregory portrayed Thomas from 2010-2014. After that, Pierson Fodé played Thomas from 2015-2018. Matthew Atkinson has since played Thomas since March 2019.
What is Thomas Forrester’s current storyline?
The Bold and the Beautiful began airing new episodes on July 20th — the first television show to return to filming and airing new episodes since COVID-19 restrictions were adjusted to allow filming in June. So far, Thomas hasn’t been brought in. However, that’s not unusual for his character; he often comes and goes throughout the show with gaps in his appearances.
Most recently, Thomas had convinced Hope Spencer to marry him, but the marriage fell through shortly after. Hope found out that her daughter, Beth, was still alive and that Thomas had known about it but kept it a secret from her.
Thomas confronts her at the beach house with the goal of apologizing, but Brooke Forrester sees what appears to be Hope struggling to get away from Thomas and pushes him off of a nearby cliff. Thomas later awakens at the hospital and confesses his wrongdoings to his father, Ridge.
Fans suspect that Matthew Atkinson might be leaving the show
Fans recently took to Twitter to speculate about how much longer Atkinson will be continuing to portray Thomas. One fan tweeted in response to a teaser trailer from The Bold and the Beautiful, “I’m glad to see Thomas back for a little bit too. We all know he ain’t staying on the show that long.”
The commenter later responded saying that they didn’t know for sure, but it seemed clear that Thomas wouldn’t be getting as much screen time as most of the other characters.
Since Thomas’s introduction to the show, he has come and gone between storylines, which could be why the actor playing him has changed so many times.
Unless the B&B writers find a compelling storyline for Thomas coming up, Atkinson may very well begin to find other acting roles that take over his time and give him a reason to leave the show. Atkinson most recently starred in the Lifetime movie Psycho Party Planner earlier this year, which could imply that he’s looking to take on more film roles.
While we don’t know for sure if Atkinson will be saying goodbye to Thomas Forrester anytime soon, you can tune in to The Bold and the Beautiful on CBS and continue keeping track of your favorite TV families in the meantime.
