Sonja Flemming/CBS
Last week on Young and Restless, Ray Wise’s villainous Genoa City alter ego, Ian Ward, appeared to meet his maker via a bullet wound after taking the Newman family hostage — but in a surprise twist, he came back to life in the ambulance whisking away his “corpse.” While Y&R has deliberately left the door open for Wise to return, he has wrapped up his most recent stay on the show. Soap Opera Digest checked in with the veteran actor about saying good-bye to Ian once again.
Soap Opera Digest: That was a pretty exciting swan song the show crafted for you, Ray!
Ray Wise: I thought it was, too! I really liked what happened.
Digest: Did you practice your dramatic eye-opening?
Wise: Yes, I did. We did have a conference about how to do it and we actually did it both ways — we did it very slowly, and then we did it quickly. And we decided the quicker way was best, with a little burst of air coming out of my mouth.
Digest: Definitely an effective way to let the fans know that we might see some Ian Ward in the future, just when we least expect him!
Wise: Well, you can’t keep a good villain down, you know? You just can’t do that! And I was very happy that they kept the door open for Ian to make a return at some point.
Digest: So, let’s go back to when your return first kicked off last November. You hadn’t been on the show since 2016 and had never worked before with Josh Griffith, Y&R’s executive producer and head writer. Was it flattering to you to know that you’d made such a strong, villainous impression that he was aware of your work?
Wise: Of course! When he got in touch with me, it was either by text or email, and he just sort of threw it out there, saying, “Is it possible you might be interested in having Ian get out of jail and come back to Genoa City?” And I immediately said yes. I’d been talking for the last eight years about letting Ian out of jail and coming back to Genoa City. So when he posed that, I went for it immediately and then we had a meeting in his office and he discussed his plans for how the storyline would [go], and it sounded great to me. And then he said that he had a partner in crime for me, and it was a woman by the name of Jordan, who had been on the show before. And Colleen Zenk [ex-Jordan] became my partner in crime on the show. She was wonderful! We worked extremely well together.
Digest: I feel like you both found the joy in the freedom that playing a character who is so unhinged allows for an actor.
Wise: Yes — we had no restrictions on where we could go, really. I mean, we had to stay within the bounds of network taste, but we could go any which way, and we tried to keep our sense of humor about it. We had a very good rapport, Colleen and I, and she was just the perfect acting partner for me on the show.
Digest: Ian’s comeback was a nice mix of being in familiar and unfamiliar dynamics, where you got to work with people you had worked with before, such as Camryn Grimes (Mariah), as well as some new people, such as Cait Fairbanks (Tessa).
Wise: Cait was lovely. She’s a lovely actress and we got along immediately and uh she’s just a, a lovely actress. And of course, Camryn, I had worked with before and this time around, she vented her spleen at me quite often and her hatred for me — I mean, for my character — was obvious [laughs]! Everybody on the show is so lovely and so accommodating and I couldn’t have asked for a better working situation. It was great to be back acting with Josh Morrow [Nick] and, of course, the two biggies, Eric Braeden [Victor] and Melody [Thomas Scott, Nikki]. I always enjoy my scenes with Eric, I think, the most — outside of my partnership with Colleen — because Eric and I, we’re close to the same age, and we’ve sort of been around for about the last 55 years, 60 years, and we have a lot in common as actors and as human beings. So, we really enjoy our time together and I think that our scenes together are kind of special.
Digest: Victor is such a titan on the show, not many characters can go up against him and not seem intimidated by him.
Wise: Yeah, that’s exactly the way I felt about it, and exactly the way I played it — that Ian feels that he’s not only on a level plane with Victor Newman, but I think he feels that he’s a little bit above him, in terms of pure brain power. Don’t show this to Eric [laughs]! No, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. I think he knows that Ian is pretty full of himself, and he thinks that he has it over everybody. But it’s great fun when we stand toe to toe and look eye to eye and give it to each other. It’s pretty dramatic, and I think the way Owen Renfroe, who directed that whole show where I faced down the entire Newman family with gun in hand, he even threw in a couple of close-ups on our eyes. I thought that was masterful. I think he directed the episode beautifully.
Digest: What was the dynamic like on set when that whole group of actors was assembled for this final showdown?
Wise: As Ian, I had to keep them all in tow, and I had to do it through physical actions and also through my voice and had to keep them in line and put the fear of the gun in them — and it has to look real for the television audience. I was very conscious of not making any false moves, like getting too close to any one person so that they could possibly grab my gun hand, that sort of thing. I wanted to keep them all in line one by one by one and address each one of them and I thought it was beautifully written, the way I gave it to each and every one of the Newmans, you know? I didn’t leave out anyone! I was an equal opportunity [orator].
Digest: As Ian’s rap sheet was getting longer and longer, did you think there was a possibility that it might be leading to a climax where Ian lost his life, or did you expect that the door was going to be left open for you to return?
Wise: I wasn’t told anything about that, but I always felt that the door would always be left open.
Digest: Were you sad to to see the arc end?
Wise: Yes, I wanted to keep going! I did. And when they told me that this would be the last show, the last episode that particular week, it came as kind of a shock to me, you know? I didn’t want to leave! I was enjoying myself so much. But I think after shooting Victor Newman, you’re gonna have to go somewhere! And I don’t know where I went — if I went back to jail, or if I went into the hospital, in the ICU, or if I escaped the ambulance somehow, if I pulled a Hannibal Lecter kind of a thing and disappeared into the woods only to surface a year or two later with a beard and long hair. I enjoyed my time on the show so much and Josh knows that I’d come back in a heartbeat if he had any new ideas about the character of Ian Ward. It would be wonderful to be back there with Eric and Mel and all those people. And I even hope that Jordan isn’t dead, either! I hope that she could come back, too. That would be amazing, if that happened. I think we’ve just scratched the surface as far as settling all of our vendettas. I think there’s plenty more that could happen.
Digest: You mentioned the vitriol that Mariah spewed at Ian, and you should know that Camryn told me it was actually kind of difficult to do, because she is so fond of you.
Wise: Some of her speeches were heartbreaking! The way that she loved Ian and the way that she looked up to him … And he, for the most part, was very tender and considerate of her, also. I think their relationship was very deep.
Digest: Do you think of Ian as being someone who is capable of sincere emotions?
Wise: Yes, I think so. I think deep down, he has a core of genuine feelings, just like everyone else. I don’t think he’s quite the psychopath that everybody makes him out to be, although he has done some very psychotic, terrible things. But I just think he’s the ultimate con man, and he’s able to manipulate and convince people of things very well and uh. You know, the confidence man, he gives you confidence, and he makes you feel good about yourself, and he shows an interest in you. But I do think that deep down, he is capable of love, and I think there were a little bits and pieces of that in the way he spoke of Jordan to the Newmans. He did love her, and he felt that she was, deep down inside, a pure soul, even though she had done some evil things.
Digest: We touched on this idea of Ian being a guy with no restrictions. I’m curious about how you went about calibrating what felt right to you in terms of not being —
Wise: Too over the top? Well, that kind of thought and control comes with experience. I’ve played every different kind of character under the sun — and don’t forget, I was Leland Palmer on Twin Peaks and I was also the devil on Reaper! So, between those two, I’ve got the evil side of things pretty well covered. I just have had a lot of experience in a lot of different areas, and from that experience, I’ve learned to be able to control and moderate and manipulate my emotions and try to dole it in acceptable proportions and not to do too much at any one time until it’s necessary. And to try to keep things on a consistent basis as far the character development and I enjoy going off and going over the top from time to time, but I’ll pick my moments!
Digest: Is there anything you would you like to say to the Y&R viewers before we say good-bye?
Wise: Well, the first thing I’d like to say is that I’ve enjoyed many of your responses on social media to my character. Most of them have been positive and not too many negative. I haven’t gotten my face slapped at Ralph’s [a Los Angeles-area supermarket] yet! I think people enjoy my character because he’s out there and he’s interesting to watch and never a dull moment. And I would like them to make it known to Josh that Ian Ward should come back at some point in the future!
Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Double Trouble: Wise hopes to back on Y&R in the future stirring up trouble as Ian — ideally, with Colleen Zenk (ex-Jordan) by his side once again.
Sonja Flemming/CBS
Last week on Young and Restless, Ray Wise’s villainous Genoa City alter ego, Ian Ward, appeared to meet his maker via a bullet wound after taking the Newman family hostage — but in a surprise twist, he came back to life in the ambulance whisking away his “corpse.” While Y&R has deliberately left the door open for Wise to return, he has wrapped up his most recent stay on the show. Soap Opera Digest checked in with the veteran actor about saying good-bye to Ian once again.
Soap Opera Digest: That was a pretty exciting swan song the show crafted for you, Ray!
Ray Wise: I thought it was, too! I really liked what happened.
Digest: Did you practice your dramatic eye-opening?
Wise: Yes, I did. We did have a conference about how to do it and we actually did it both ways — we did it very slowly, and then we did it quickly. And we decided the quicker way was best, with a little burst of air coming out of my mouth.
Digest: Definitely an effective way to let the fans know that we might see some Ian Ward in the future, just when we least expect him!
Wise: Well, you can’t keep a good villain down, you know? You just can’t do that! And I was very happy that they kept the door open for Ian to make a return at some point.
Digest: So, let’s go back to when your return first kicked off last November. You hadn’t been on the show since 2016 and had never worked before with Josh Griffith, Y&R’s executive producer and head writer. Was it flattering to you to know that you’d made such a strong, villainous impression that he was aware of your work?
Wise: Of course! When he got in touch with me, it was either by text or email, and he just sort of threw it out there, saying, “Is it possible you might be interested in having Ian get out of jail and come back to Genoa City?” And I immediately said yes. I’d been talking for the last eight years about letting Ian out of jail and coming back to Genoa City. So when he posed that, I went for it immediately and then we had a meeting in his office and he discussed his plans for how the storyline would [go], and it sounded great to me. And then he said that he had a partner in crime for me, and it was a woman by the name of Jordan, who had been on the show before. And Colleen Zenk [ex-Jordan] became my partner in crime on the show. She was wonderful! We worked extremely well together.
Digest: I feel like you both found the joy in the freedom that playing a character who is so unhinged allows for an actor.
Wise: Yes — we had no restrictions on where we could go, really. I mean, we had to stay within the bounds of network taste, but we could go any which way, and we tried to keep our sense of humor about it. We had a very good rapport, Colleen and I, and she was just the perfect acting partner for me on the show.
Digest: Ian’s comeback was a nice mix of being in familiar and unfamiliar dynamics, where you got to work with people you had worked with before, such as Camryn Grimes (Mariah), as well as some new people, such as Cait Fairbanks (Tessa).
Wise: Cait was lovely. She’s a lovely actress and we got along immediately and uh she’s just a, a lovely actress. And of course, Camryn, I had worked with before and this time around, she vented her spleen at me quite often and her hatred for me — I mean, for my character — was obvious [laughs]! Everybody on the show is so lovely and so accommodating and I couldn’t have asked for a better working situation. It was great to be back acting with Josh Morrow [Nick] and, of course, the two biggies, Eric Braeden [Victor] and Melody [Thomas Scott, Nikki]. I always enjoy my scenes with Eric, I think, the most — outside of my partnership with Colleen — because Eric and I, we’re close to the same age, and we’ve sort of been around for about the last 55 years, 60 years, and we have a lot in common as actors and as human beings. So, we really enjoy our time together and I think that our scenes together are kind of special.
Digest: Victor is such a titan on the show, not many characters can go up against him and not seem intimidated by him.
Wise: Yeah, that’s exactly the way I felt about it, and exactly the way I played it — that Ian feels that he’s not only on a level plane with Victor Newman, but I think he feels that he’s a little bit above him, in terms of pure brain power. Don’t show this to Eric [laughs]! No, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. I think he knows that Ian is pretty full of himself, and he thinks that he has it over everybody. But it’s great fun when we stand toe to toe and look eye to eye and give it to each other. It’s pretty dramatic, and I think the way Owen Renfroe, who directed that whole show where I faced down the entire Newman family with gun in hand, he even threw in a couple of close-ups on our eyes. I thought that was masterful. I think he directed the episode beautifully.
Digest: What was the dynamic like on set when that whole group of actors was assembled for this final showdown?
Wise: As Ian, I had to keep them all in tow, and I had to do it through physical actions and also through my voice and had to keep them in line and put the fear of the gun in them — and it has to look real for the television audience. I was very conscious of not making any false moves, like getting too close to any one person so that they could possibly grab my gun hand, that sort of thing. I wanted to keep them all in line one by one by one and address each one of them and I thought it was beautifully written, the way I gave it to each and every one of the Newmans, you know? I didn’t leave out anyone! I was an equal opportunity [orator].
Digest: As Ian’s rap sheet was getting longer and longer, did you think there was a possibility that it might be leading to a climax where Ian lost his life, or did you expect that the door was going to be left open for you to return?
Wise: I wasn’t told anything about that, but I always felt that the door would always be left open.
Digest: Were you sad to to see the arc end?
Wise: Yes, I wanted to keep going! I did. And when they told me that this would be the last show, the last episode that particular week, it came as kind of a shock to me, you know? I didn’t want to leave! I was enjoying myself so much. But I think after shooting Victor Newman, you’re gonna have to go somewhere! And I don’t know where I went — if I went back to jail, or if I went into the hospital, in the ICU, or if I escaped the ambulance somehow, if I pulled a Hannibal Lecter kind of a thing and disappeared into the woods only to surface a year or two later with a beard and long hair. I enjoyed my time on the show so much and Josh knows that I’d come back in a heartbeat if he had any new ideas about the character of Ian Ward. It would be wonderful to be back there with Eric and Mel and all those people. And I even hope that Jordan isn’t dead, either! I hope that she could come back, too. That would be amazing, if that happened. I think we’ve just scratched the surface as far as settling all of our vendettas. I think there’s plenty more that could happen.
Digest: You mentioned the vitriol that Mariah spewed at Ian, and you should know that Camryn told me it was actually kind of difficult to do, because she is so fond of you.
Wise: Some of her speeches were heartbreaking! The way that she loved Ian and the way that she looked up to him … And he, for the most part, was very tender and considerate of her, also. I think their relationship was very deep.
Digest: Do you think of Ian as being someone who is capable of sincere emotions?
Wise: Yes, I think so. I think deep down, he has a core of genuine feelings, just like everyone else. I don’t think he’s quite the psychopath that everybody makes him out to be, although he has done some very psychotic, terrible things. But I just think he’s the ultimate con man, and he’s able to manipulate and convince people of things very well and uh. You know, the confidence man, he gives you confidence, and he makes you feel good about yourself, and he shows an interest in you. But I do think that deep down, he is capable of love, and I think there were a little bits and pieces of that in the way he spoke of Jordan to the Newmans. He did love her, and he felt that she was, deep down inside, a pure soul, even though she had done some evil things.
Digest: We touched on this idea of Ian being a guy with no restrictions. I’m curious about how you went about calibrating what felt right to you in terms of not being —
Wise: Too over the top? Well, that kind of thought and control comes with experience. I’ve played every different kind of character under the sun — and don’t forget, I was Leland Palmer on Twin Peaks and I was also the devil on Reaper! So, between those two, I’ve got the evil side of things pretty well covered. I just have had a lot of experience in a lot of different areas, and from that experience, I’ve learned to be able to control and moderate and manipulate my emotions and try to dole it in acceptable proportions and not to do too much at any one time until it’s necessary. And to try to keep things on a consistent basis as far the character development and I enjoy going off and going over the top from time to time, but I’ll pick my moments!
Digest: Is there anything you would you like to say to the Y&R viewers before we say good-bye?
Wise: Well, the first thing I’d like to say is that I’ve enjoyed many of your responses on social media to my character. Most of them have been positive and not too many negative. I haven’t gotten my face slapped at Ralph’s [a Los Angeles-area supermarket] yet! I think people enjoy my character because he’s out there and he’s interesting to watch and never a dull moment. And I would like them to make it known to Josh that Ian Ward should come back at some point in the future!
Howard Wise/jpistudios.com
Double Trouble: Wise hopes to back on Y&R in the future stirring up trouble as Ian — ideally, with Colleen Zenk (ex-Jordan) by his side once again.