One on One with Megan Ward

Los Angeles native Megan Ward has played fashionista Kate Howard on ABC's General Hospital since May 2007. Upon her debut, she immediately captured the attention of fans with her fierce and layered portrayal of such a complex character. Fans reacted to the chemistry between Megan and co-star Maurice Benard (Sonny), quickly making turning them into a popular staple on the show.

The youngest of four children, Ward and her family moved to Hawaii at the age of four. Megan was bitten by the acting bug at a young age, thanks in part to her parents, who were actors & acting coaches. Ward had already begun amassing her portfolio by the time she graduated from Kaiser High School. Soon after graduation, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her career in acting.

Prior to joining General Hospital, Megan booked various various lead, supporting and guest starring roles in primetime series such as Class of 96, Party of Five, Dark Skies, Melrose Place, Friends, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Boomtown, Without a Trace, NCIS, Boston Legal, CSI: Miami, ER, and Sleeper Cell. You've also seen her on the big screen as well in films such as Encino Man, The Brady Bunch Movie, and Joe's Apartment. Her new movie, The Invited, starring Lou Diamond Phillips, Pam Grier and Dana Barron is scheduled for release later this year.

With a career that has spanned the daytime, primetime and film, the only question is what does the future hold? The married mother of two has already proven she can handle anything thrown her way, juggling both a family and a career, and her fans are anxious to see what project she tackles next. Earlier this week, Soap Opera Source had the opportunity to speak with the actress, who is a self described "open book." We hope you'll enjoy!

What do you enjoy most about portraying Kate Howard?
I'm not like Kate Howard in my everyday life so it's fun but also a challenge to put her on every day I go to work.  She dresses like a grown up, has so much outward confidence, runs a company, isn't afraid to say what she thinks, to delegate, and have ownership of her position.  I don't like confrontation and I'm still learning to speak up for myself, so I enjoy the opportunity to embody the person I sometimes wish I could be.

Why do you think the pairing of Sonny and Kate became a popular GH couple with the viewing audience?
The relationship for Kate and Sonny was very beautifully set up. From what I understand, the character of Sonny had been in a very dark place.  Kate brought back the boy, the part of Sonny that was denied for so long.  He was flirty and fun, engaging and charming, and I think the same thing happened for Kate. She was set up as someone who had developed a very thick shell of protection and in a professional position where she needed to project a certain image and strength for boardroom war.  She had given up on real love having not felt it since she was a girl in Brooklyn with Sonny.

Both characters made difficult personal choices to advance their careers and both paid the consequences. So you had two characters starting on equal footing.  It was the perfect romantic comedy set up: Sonny breaking down Kate's barriers and Connie charming the boy inside Sonny.  It was reminiscent of Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew.  The more Kate protested the harder he would push.  Kate was forced to open up her heart and break down her walls.  It was a very mature, sophisticated journey to watch, one you could hope for and root for.

It was also a storyline where you didn't know the ending. Sonny had never been with a woman like this. Maybe these characters could actually change at this intersection of their lives.  They found each other at a very appropriate point where they could both be reflective about how they got to where they were.  They could ask themselves what would have happened if they had taken a different road.  They were both brave to venture down this alternate path and see what their lives could have been if they had made different choices.  That's a very relatable and hopeful situation for people.

Maurice and I had an instant connection.  We challenged but trusted each other.  We were both committed to telling a good story with strong character development.  Working with him has been one of my favorite career partnerships.

Were you surprised when you learned Kate would have sex with Jax, her business partner and a married man?
Sort of... But not really.  I think it was a logical story point to happen for both of them.  I do remember feeling at the time Kate was very, very conscious of her feelings for Sonny.  So it was challenging for me knowing it was a daring character choice. That being said, Kate and Jax are an obvious coupling. They have a lot in common, they have a long history of friendship and they were both grieving in the same way. They were both betrayed by people they were very invested in.  So it would be logical for them to both make a mistake like this, together at the same time.

Outside of a story with Sonny, what would you like to see for Kate? 
I think it would be interesting to see a coupling who live more of a professional life. What would it be like to have a power couple in Port Charles?  To see Kate actually living the life she created for herself with someone who challenged AND loved her. Kate lost everything for Sonny and when she went down that path with him, it changed her. There was a scene where she said if you don't ever have love, you can't miss it, but once you have it, it will leave a hole when it's gone.  And I think what Kate needs, honestly, is someone who loves her, someone who puts her first and cares about her.  I mean, doesn't everybody?? But she doesn't have somebody like that on any level so you can imagine it would effect her emotionally.  So even if Kate connected with someone as unpredictable as Coleman, someone who might enjoy her, it would be a nice change and seriously a lot of fun.

Beyond romance, I have about 20 other ideas for Kate. (Tracy becoming an investor at Crimson, Kate mentoring Maxie, Kate making Kristina a successful teen model!)

Speaking of Coleman…. Many were surprised by Kate's interaction with Coleman at the wedding reception.  We don't get to see that side of Kate very often.
It's been a while since we have seen that side of her.  It's not out of character, its just been a long time since she allowed herself to have some fun. That night, she decided to celebrate, to leave her problems at the doorstep.  And it's one of my favorite days I've spent at GH.

With the news about Sarah Brown leaving GH in October, what are your thoughts on a reunion for Sonny and Kate? 
It's a very complicated question and answer.  I don't feel Sonny and Kate have completed their story.  External forces broke them up. Sonny was motivated by actions against Kate and so it really, to me, feels there is still more story to tell. Their journey was stunted and it's not impossible to pick up the unanswered questions. That being said, Kate has been very, very hurt in the last year, by all of the circumstances and it has forced her to put her walls back up.  Personally I would love to explore it and find out what they have learned. I believe in their love and can still hope for a future.  But at the same time, the character of Sonny has gone to a dark place again and the character of Kate would have to forgive a lot, so what would it take for that to happen?

Kate is one of the best characters I have ever played because she's so complex.  She can be tough but she also is a very vulnerable little girl who has a good heart.  And so there is this very big spectrum for her to both make mistakes and to do the right thing.  There are endless possibilities for the character to play.  I feel like, sometimes I've had jobs in the past when I knew the journey was over for the character. Usually I am confined with a limited role. But with Kate, I do feel that there is more story to tell.

I think in the position Kate is in [owner of Crimson], she has to be sometimes controlling and strong willed.
I wish they would show that a little more.  I think if people are unfamiliar with such a high stress work environment, they need to see how work gets accomplished in the real world.

Her personal life is another side of Kate and we should see the vulnerability, we should see both sides of Kate Howard.
That's why I think she's such a great character.  You're not sure how she is going to react, what choice she will make.  She's a character with duality, but still believable.

What kind of relationship with Olivia does Kate really have?
Historically, they were like sisters.  They come from close Italian families. Olivia only had brothers and Kate didn't have any siblings. Their relationship is very love/hate. They can be competitive AND have each other's back.  Kate made the choice to leave her family and Olivia chose to keep the paternity of her son a secret.  So they both made decisions the other couldn't stand for. They haven't written exactly what caused that final big fight.

You have to remember everything about Kate and Sonny's adult relationship started from her guilt of walking away from him.  Perhaps if Olivia had told Sonny the truth, maybe he wouldn't have become a mobster, just like if Connie had run away with him, maybe he wouldn't have become a mobster.  Kate thought she could never go back.  She burned her bridges and regretted it. So Sonny brought Olivia back hoping to heal Kate.  But Kate knows they had this relationship before her, knows she had his son and it's obviously a dangerous/messy reunion for her.  What is that going to mean for the three of them?

Now of course, it ends quickly for Sonny and Kate because she gets shot and Sonny makes his choices.  Olivia did everything she could to keep them apart.  Kate kept Olivia's secret, this life changing secret, but Olivia had no problem disclosing Kate's secret (and calling her Connie exclusively) because she didn't believe in it.  Kate didn't believe in hers either but still consciously kept it in spite of everything. This is something that has never been acknowledged but is still part of their character's history.  Kate still feels guilt for having made a bad decision at 18 when she was ignorant and naïve about what the world held for her.  But Olivia continues to remind Kate of her mistakes.  Now Kate is grown up and trying to move forward.

I think Kate still truly loves Olivia, even though they haven't had an opportunity to show it to each other.  They've had interesting conversations, especially when Olivia came to town.  They were very sophisticated, mature conversations about the nature of their relationship but it has kind of gotten stuck in one gear.  I think that Kate ultimately, fundamentally believes for better or for worse, this secret needs to come out for Olivia's sake, for Dante's sake, for Sonny's sake.  Whether or not Sonny's children are safe changes day to day. [Laughs]  But Kate believes in disclosure because of the choices she's made and the consequences she's paid.  The secret could have been part of the reason she said no to Sonny's first marriage proposal and the reason she said yes the second time. She took the risk and moved forward and when she laid there bleeding, she regretted not having told him.

I think Kate wants to have a relationship with Olivia but until Olivia really acknowledges Kate within the situation, in a positive way, I think it's very difficult for them to have that sisterly love.  Kate is trying to reach out, trying to help Olivia.  Eventually, the conversation progresses. Circumstances have changed and there are scenes that haven't aired yet, where Kate starts to make conclusions about who Olivia really is if she is so adamant about refusing to discuss it.

It's complicated because I think Kate misses family, and again, just like love, she feels like she's made choices where it's not available to her.  I think Olivia and Kate have tremendous potential to bond again, in a loving way, but I think it's always going to be touch and go because of their history, their own strength of character, and opinions about choices.  They're stuck in their individual point of view. Something needs to shift with both of them to rekindle the good part of their connection.