Phoebe’s Death On The Bold And The Beautiful Was Personal For Kyle Lowder
Rick Forrester and Phoebe Forrester (MacKenzie Mauzy) had a bizarre relationship on “The Bold and the Beautiful.” Although attracted to each other, the two believed they were related, as Rick was the half-brother of Phoebe’s father, Ridge Forrester. But it turned out that Ridge was actually the son of Massimo Marone, not Eric Forrester. Phoebe and Rick realized they had no biological connection and were free to date.
However, their relationship was rocky because Rick had an affair with Ashley Abbott (Eileen Davidson) and Phoebe’s mother, Taylor Hayes (then Hunter Tylo). They tried working past it, but the end came when he made advances toward her twin sister, Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood), causing a chain reaction that led to tragedy.
Kyle Lowder, who currently portrays Rex Brady on “Days of Our Lives,” previously played Rick Forrester from 2007 to 2011. In an interview with Soaps in May 2008, he explained that Rick always acted impulsively, which led him to his various affairs. That same month, Lowder also spoke to Michael Fairman TV, explaining Rick’s motivations, saying, “I want to make sure that Rick going [from] falling in love with Phoebe, to falling in love with Ashley, to falling in love with Taylor, is believable with this character.” His commitment to giving the best performance is evident, and he recently opened up about how a real-life tragic event affected his acting when it came to Rick and Phoebe’s disastrous ending.
A real life tragedy was in Lowder’s mind after Phoebe was killed
Kyle Lowder was part of Soap Opera Digest’s actor roundup, posted on October 18, and recalled the details of the last “Bold and the Beautiful” scenes between Rick and Phoebe Forrester. Phoebe was livid because of what he did to her sister, and when he tried to get away from the confrontational woman, she jumped into his car, causing a fatal accident. Lowder explained that the enraged Phoebe “was distracting him, clawing at his face, and he crashed the car,” from which she was ultimately ejected, dying in the arms of her father, Ridge Forrester.
Lowder then recounted real-life memories of a friend who had died after being hit by a drunk driver, which came to his mind while filming Phoebe’s sad ending. “I remember shooting the funeral scenes and Rick visiting Phoebe’s grave. Those were things that I went through personally, going to my friend’s funeral and visiting his grave,” he stated. As the painful memories and feelings encroached upon the actor, he remembered, “Kneeling in front of her gravesite, I flashed back to being in front of my friend’s grave and completely lost it on set.” His brutal honesty about how the tragedy in his life informed his performance was heartbreaking, and he explained that “The two experiences didn’t just merge, they collided with each other.”
