Emmerdale star Katie Hill has revealed she questioned whether her time on the ITV soap was coming to an end after discovering her character Sarah Sugden was to become a killer.
Hill, who has played Sarah Sugden since 2017, recently saw her character accidentally kill Dr Caitlin Todd (Caroline Harker) during a heated confrontation.
The incident occurred after Sarah discovered Dr Caitlin had been sexually assaulting her grandmother Charity Dingle (Emma Atkins), who has since taken the fall for Sarah.
Initial reaction to the storyline
Hill said: “I was a bit speechless at first. And then I kind of thought ‘Do I go to prison?’
“(Producer Sophie Roper) immediately said, ‘Don’t worry, you don’t go to prison’. I was like, ‘okay, and breathe – I’ve still got a job’.”
Once reassured she was not being written out, the 23-year-old actress said she was thrilled to be part of such a significant plot.
“I was just honoured to be trusted with the storyline. This is the biggest storyline I’ve had,” she said.
Impact on Sarah's character
Reflecting on the accident, Hill said living with what Sarah has done will take a huge toll on the character.
She said: “You know, it changes everything, it completely rocks her world. But obviously, it was by accident.
“We all know Sarah as a character, she doesn’t have that in her. So, it comes as a massive shock.
“I think when it first happens, she just doesn’t even know how to process it. She can’t comprehend that this has happened…
“It’s sort of transitioning Sarah from being this innocent, happy young mum… to then this massive moment in her life that will change her forever.”
Family secrets and future fallout
Hill has been at the centre of drama in Emmerdale village this year, with her character recently welcoming daughter Leyla, who Charity carried as a surrogate.
However, Sarah is unaware that the baby is not biologically hers and is instead the result of a fling Charity had with Ross Barton (Michael Parr).
Hill explained she struggled to understand that, biologically, Sarah is actually Leyla’s niece rather than her mother, saying: “Honestly, I didn’t even think about that for a long time.
“Then someone said to me, ‘Sarah’s breastfeeding her auntie’, and then I couldn’t get it out of my head. I was like ‘this is really, really weird’.”
Discussing the potential fallout if the secret is revealed, Hill said she thinks Sarah will still consider Leyla to be her baby.
She said: “It’s the type of thing we won’t know until we know.
“It’s a massive thing, because, obviously, she’s raised this baby since she was born. That love can’t just go away like that.
“The biological side of things has changed, but you don’t just stop loving a child that you’ve raised.”
Hill added the revelation could alter Sarah’s feelings towards her grandmother, saying: “Charity’s given her the best gift she ever could have asked for.
“So, for that to be taken away from her, it’ll definitely cause issues with their relationship.”
Emmerdale airs at 8pm on weeknights on ITV1 and STV, or from 7am on ITVX and STV Player and YouTube.
