‘The Bold and the Beautiful’: Kimberlin Brown Explains the Benefits of Playing a Prisoner
Acting is a demanding job, and soap opera actors especially have it rough. They have to memorize many pages and, like other actors, still have to work their angles to ensure they have each shot right and don’t block the camera. Kimberlin Brown, who plays Sheila Carter on The Bold and the Beautiful, enjoys one aspect of the job. The actor explains the benefits of playing a prisoner.
Kimberlin Brown says playing a prisoner is easy
Brown has played the villain Sheila Carter in two daytime soaps, The Young and the Restless and B&B. In both shows, her crimes have eventually caught up to her, but what’s a little jail time to the iconic Sheila, especially since she knows she would not stay incarcerated for long? Most would not enjoy playing a character behind bars, but Brown loves such scenes and storylines.
In a recent interview with Soap Opera Digest, the star explained that playing a prisoner isn’t difficult. When asked how it feels to be confined to a jail set, Brown said, “You know what I love about it? I know my blocking. I’m handcuffed to a table, so I don’t have to worry about hitting my mark or looking for my lighting or anything like that.”
The 61-year-old actor revealed that being on a prison set means her movements are limited. “The one great thing about being confined in a cell or an interrogation room is your movement is confined. It makes it so you can concentrate on what you have to say within that scene versus whatever movements you have to go with it,” she added.
Brown also said she enjoys going barefaced for a prison scene because “evil is not pretty.” “I’m not one of those actresses who feels that I need to be pretty for everything,” she said, adding, “I let hair and makeup and wardrobe decide how I need to look that day.”
Kimberlin Brown says freedom is important to Sheila
Sheila has been committing crimes for decades and has never answered for them. In real life, she would have been charged and remained in prison for almost her whole life, but since B&B and Y&R are soap operas, she has to break free to keep things interesting.
Escaping from prison enables Sheila to exert her revenge against those who have hurt her (and those who haven’t), and her portrayer believes it’s why she keeps escaping. “Sheila will always find a way to maintain her freedom no matter what it takes,” Brown told the outlet.
The actor confessed that she never knows how a story will end when the show begins a new plotline. “You never know what she’s going to do next, and in all honesty, Kimberlin doesn’t know what she is going to do next either,” Brown dished.
What is Sheila up to on ‘B&B’?
When Sheila escaped prison and faked her death, she shacked up with Deacon after blackmailing him into helping her. Sheila moved on with Bill Spencer, who bailed her out after her recent arrest, much to everyone’s chagrin.
It’s unclear what each party stands to gain from this bizarre arrangement, but fans have theories about what’s happening. Some theorize that Sheila is blackmailing Bill for help, but that couldn’t be the case as he shows genuine affection for her, even when they’re alone. Bill even told his sons that Sheila accepted him for who he is.
The more reasonable theory would be that Bill is Sheila’s ticket to freedom and wealth (and possibly protection), and knowing her, she will milk him dry to avoid going to jail. Bill may love Sheila as he claims, but she still carries a torch for Deacon as they work better together, so hopefully, their secret meeting may be what pulls Bill away from her.
