Whitney Russell

Whitney Russell
Passions character
Portrayed by Brook Kerr
Duration 1999–2007
First appearance July 5, 1999
Last appearance September 7, 2007
Created by James E. Reilly
Book appearances Hidden Passions
Classification Former; contract
Profile
Occupation Homemaker
Nun (formerly)
High school student (formerly, graduated)
Residence New Orleans, Louisiana

Whitney Russell is a fictional character in the American television soap opera Passions, which aired on NBC from 1999 to 2007 and on DirecTV in 2007–08. Passions followed romantic and supernatural adventures in the fictional, coastal, New England town of Harmony. The role of Witney was created by the soap's creator and head writer James E. Reilly; the character was portrayed by Brook Kerr from the series' debut on July 5, 1999, to September 7, 2007. In 2005, Sidne Siobhan Phillips portrayed the character in flashbacks.[1]

Whitney is a mamber of Passions' Russell family; she is introduced as the eldest daughter of Eve Russell (Tracey Ross) and T.C. Russell (Rodney Van Johnson), and the sister of Simone Russell. The character is primarily shown as a confidant to Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald Crane (Lindsay Hartley) but her later storylines focus on her romance with Chad Harris-Crane and the possibility they may be engaging in an incestuous relationship. Following Chad's death, she leaves Harmony to raise her children Miles Harris-Crane and his unnamed sibling in New Orleans with the support of her father and sister.

Kerr's performance was praised by critics; she was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series at the 39th NAACP Image Awards. She was also nomiated for the 2005 Soap Opera Digest Awards' Outstanding Younger Lead Actress, and with co-stars Lindsay Hartley and Justin Hartley for the Favorite Triangle award.

Development

Background

Whitney Russell is one of the twenty-five original contract cast members created by the program's co-creator James E. Reilly. Sheraton Kalouria, senior vice president of NBC’s daytime programming,[2] said Whitney and the Russell family were created and casted in an attempt to build characters "as diverse as the U.S." and to set the show apart from other soap operas. He added the show’s racially diverse ensemble represented by "the African American Russells and the Hispanic Lopez-Fitzgeralds" reflects "its truly color-blind storytelling". Each member of the Russell family was designed to be "an integral part of the show" in an attempt to avoid creating token characters.[3]

Rodney Van Johnson, who plays the family's patriarch T.C. Russell, later said in an interview with Jet:

We are the only daytime drama with a full African-American family. The Russells have a key role in the community. There aren't just a flash in the pan. The storylines are heavy. The show has received a huge response from the African-American community for that reason.[3]

Casting and characterization

Passions' casting director Jacklynn Briskey originally rejected twenty-nine-year-old Brook Kerr for the role of Whitney Russell, believing she would look too mature to play a teenager. Despite the rejection, Kerr's husband Christopher Warren sent in his wife's head shots into the network and she was hired to play the character.[4] Kerr later described the week of auditioning and two screen tests to be formally cast in the role as "very fast for me".[5]

Kerr described Whitney as initially being "so goal-oriented" and without a sense of balance.[5] Dana Block from Tulsa World described Whitney as "the good girl daughter ... who didn't concern herself with much else".[6] While discussing her portrayal of the character, Kerr said, "I was always the sensible one, the friend everyone could count on, always doing what I should".[6] She said her scenes with Chad Harris-Crane allowed her to explore more of Whitney's independence and described her portrayal of Whitney's guilt and confusion at the possibility of Chad being her half-brother and giving birth to his child as allowing her to act the character in new and different ways.[6]

Whitney's storylines with Chad received mixed responses from other Passions cast members. Charles Divins said the characters' tumultuous romance met viewers' expectations for a soap opera and added, "People watch soaps as an escape. People need drama. Whether you love it or hate it, people will talk about it.”[7] Near the end of the show, Tracey Ross stated "I was never crazy about the incest storyline with Whitney and Chad".[8]

Storylines

Whitney Russell's early appearances focus on helping her childhood friend Theresa Lopez-Fitzgerald with her relationship with Ethan Winthrop and her rivalry with Gwen Winthrop. Whitney is initially portrayed as constantly looking up to her parents Eve and T.C. Russell for guidance, and devoting her life to tennis and school at their insistence. She is unaware of her mother's past drug abuse, and relationship and child with Julian Crane. Whitney briefly dates private detective Frank Lomax, but their relationship rapidly deteriorates when she discovers he was hired to report Theresa for stalking Ethan. Shortly after the break-up, Whitney meets and falls in love with Chad Harris but he becomes involved in a relationship with her sister Simone. Eve discourages Whitney from pursuing a relationship with Chad, fearing he will be a bad influence on her daughter in the same way Julian was on her teenage self. T.C. disapproves of Whitney having relationships that will distract her from tennis.

Whitney's relationship with Chad is complicated by Simone's crush on him. Whitney and Chad keep their romantic and sexual encounters secret for years while he pretends to be in love with Simone. The love triangle continues until Simone catches Whitney kissing Chad. Simone publicly breaks up with Chad and tells everyone in Harmony about his relationship with her sister. During 2003, Whitney's connection with Chad steadily unravels after the discovery of his marriage to Latoya Harris (Jennia Fredrique) and her attempt to murder Whitney.

In 2004, Eve's vengeful adoptive sister Liz Sanbourne (Amelia Marshall) arranges for Eve's past relationship with Julian to be exposed to the Russell family and the rest of Harmony, resulting in Chard being erroneously identified as their son. The possible incestuous implications of Whitney's relationship with Chad serves as her primary storyline on the soap opera. Whitney initially rejects her mother for hiding her past with Julian, but they reconnect by singing at the Blue Note, a local jazz club. Whitney briefly considers pursuing a career in music and frequently sings at the Blue Note. Vocalist Jania Foxworth was selected as Whitney's singing voice; Kerr lip-synchronized during her scenes.[9]

When the possibility Chad could be Eve's son is revealed, Whitney discovers she is pregnant with Miles Harris-Crane and initially keeps her pregnancy secret. She initiates a relationship with Fox Crane to insinuate he is the father of her unborn child and to protect herself and her child from the stigma of incest. Whitney originally plans to drug and rape Fox to make the cover story believable, but could not complete her plans because they conflict with her moral and ethical beliefs. The couple eventually have consensual sex and Fox identifies himself as the father of her baby. While Fox helps search for Theresa's missing daughter Jane Winthrop, Whitney persuades him to leave her with his power of attorney. On March 23, 2005, she gives birth to a son and immediately uses Fox's power of attorney to put him up for adoption. Two couples—Julian and Eve, and T.C. and Liz—compete to adopt the boy but Chad is awarded custody of the child. He attempts to use the child to reconnect with Whitney. Whitney and Chad name their baby Miles Davis Harris after jazz musician Miles Davis.

The storyline escalates during the earthquake and tsunami in the show's 2005 summertime extravaganza. Whitney has sex with Chad in the middle of the tsunami and admits to Chad he is Miles's biological father. Fox overhears her confessions and ends his relationship with her. Whitney is overwhelmed by guilt and shame by the assumption of committing incest; she joins a convent to become closer to God and prepares to take holy orders. At the convent, she is manipulated by Alistair Crane, who is disguised as a messenger of God as part of his scheme to steal a chalice from the Pope's private chambers and take over the world. Identified as the Vendetta plot, the show's 2006 summertime extravaganza centers on Alistair luring Whitney, Chad, and several other residents of Harmony to Rome. While in Rome, Chad is given his birth certificate by tabloid editor JT Cornell and discovers he was conceived during Alistair's rape of Liz.

Following the revelation of his true paternity, Chad restarts his relationship with Whitney and they decide to raise their son together. On December 26, 2006, Whitney marries Chad and takes his last name, becoming known as Whitney Russell Harris-Crane. Unbeknown to Whitney, Chad previously began a sexual relationship with the tabloid reporter Vincent Clarkson and continues the affair after their reunion and wedding. Chad is unaware Vincent is actually his half-brother because he is Eve and Julian's child. Whitney becomes increasingly suspicious of Chad's fidelity after discovering she is pregnant with their second child. Vincent arranges for Whitney to catch him having sex with Chad in a gay bar, causing her to file for divorce. The estranged couple start to reconcile as they try to help Theresa and Ethan reunite, but the possibility of a union is cut short when Alistair kills Chad on August 28, 2007; Chad dies while professing his love for Whitney and their children. As a result of Alistair's actions, Whitney chooses to delete Crane from her name and asks to be known as Mrs. Harris. It is unknown whether her children retain Crane in their surnames.

After saying goodbye to Theresa and Eve, Whitney leaves Harmony and moves to New Orleans to live with her sister and son. T.C. is later said to have moved there to help her. On January 1, 2008, Whitney contacts police chief Sam Bennett to say she is willing to testify at Alistair's murder trial. This proves unnecessary when Viki Chatsworth kills Alistair. On July 16, 2008, a letter from Simone to her friend Kay Bennett discloses that Whitney has given birth to her child; the exact date of birth, and the child's gender and name are never revealed.

Trever Kimball of TVSeriesFinale.com reported Kerr's exit was a result of the cut in costs during the show's transition to DirecTV.[10] The show's budget was reduced by "a reported $4-to-$5 million" to secure the renewal on a new network.[11]

Other appearances

The character of Whitney received further media attention because of Kerr's participation alongside the other cast members of the Russell family to record public service announcements (PSAs) to celebrate the achievements of African-Americans including Sidney Poitier, Marian Anderson, Alex Haley, Thurgood Marshall, Condoleezza Rice, and Bill Cosby in a commemoration of Black History Month. The PSAs aired on NBC stations throughout February 2003. Sheraton Kalouria identified the PSA campaign as "another example of Passions' commitment to diversity and inclusion" alongside its featuring of a racially diverse cast.[12]

Despite the focus on promoting female African-American characters like Whitney, Lynette Rice of Entertainment Weekly wrote the show failed to attract the "hard-to-reach audience [of] African-American women". Kalouria said, "quite frankly, many of them aren't aware Passions is even on".[13]

Following DirecTV's decision to not renew the show, Passions partnered with Premiere Props to hold a public, two-day estate sale of props and costumes from the show. Stacey Ward, a director of NBCUniversal, pitched the auction as "an opportunity to own a piece of [viewers'] favorite show".[14] Several items related to Whitney, including her diary[15] and the "Music Video of the Year" Whammy award she dreamed of winning, were put up for sale.[16]

Reception

Kerr was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Daytime Drama Series at the 39th NAACP Image Awards for her portrayal of Whitney.[17] She was also nominated for Outstanding Younger Lead Actress, and alongside co-stars Lindsay and Justin Hartley for the Favorite Triangle award at the 2005 Soap Opera Digest Awards.[18]

The exact nature of Whitney's relationship with Chad attracted frequent speculation from media outlets and fans. The icenst storyline led media outlets to sensationalize Harmony as the place where "half-siblings sleep with one another".[6] Soap Opera Digest listed the 2006 revelation that Whitney and Chad were not related by blood as one of Passions' most shocking secrets.[19]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Who's Who In Harmony". Soapcentral. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  2. ↑ "NBCS days ABC’s Kalouria". Variety. 2000-05-09. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  3. 1 2 "Soap Opera ‘Passions’ Keeps Igniting Fervor Among Daytime Viewers". Jet. 2003-01-13. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  4. ↑ "Passions: Brook Kerr (Whitney Russell) on soaptalk". Soap Talk. 2010-12-31. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  5. 1 2 "20 Questions Interview: Brook Kerr". NBC. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Daytime Dial: Life is far from ‘Harmony’-ous for Brook Kerr’s Whitney". Tulsa World. 2006-05-21. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  7. ↑ "Interview: ‘Passions’: Looking Back". Tulsa World. Retrieved 2016-01-31.
  8. ↑ "Tracey Ross Looks Back at Her Time on Passions". Soaps.com. 2008-07-14. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  9. ↑ "PASSIONS FAQs". Soap Opera Digest. 2005-04-26. Retrieved 2016-02-10.
  10. ↑ "Passions: Who Won't Survive the Move to DirecTV? - canceled TV shows - TV Series Finale". canceled TV shows - TV Series Finale. Retrieved 2016-02-17.
  11. ↑ "Budget Woes Result in Passions Cutbacks". SoapCentral. 2006-06-12. Archived from the original on 31 January 2016. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  12. ↑ "NBC's "Passions" Actors Celebrate Black History Month". Hoosier State Chronicles. 2003-02-20. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  13. ↑ "Passions tries to attract a new type of audience". Entertainment Weekly. 2003-01-07. Retrieved 2016-01-19.
  14. ↑ "Passions Props Sale". Soaps.com. 2008-04-02. Retrieved 2016-01-16.
  15. ↑ "Passions Whitney (Brook Kerr) Diary TV Movie Props". iCollector.com Online Auctions. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  16. ↑ "Passions Whitney (Brook Kerr) MUSIC AWARD TV Props". iCollector.com Online Auctions. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  17. ↑ "LIST OF NAACP IMAGE AWARDS WINNERS". NAACP. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  18. ↑ Weber, Carol Banks (2004-10-01). "News for the week of 01-Nov-20014". Soap Zone. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  19. ↑ "A Look Back At Those Memorable Revelations That Rocked Harmony". Soap Opera Digest. 2007-12-18. Retrieved 2016-01-21.

External links

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