Photo Credit: Gilles Toucas

Amber is back stirring the pot for the residents of Los Angeles on The Bold and the Beautiful and no one is safe from her lies!  And that means it gives actress Adrienne Frantz some deliciously devilish dilemmas to play as her soap alter ego.  You see, Amber has decided to lie about her baby’s paternity and go for the gold!  I mean, what else is this ultimate gold-digger supposed to do?  Then enter her mother, Tawny, and sidekick Carl, and we have a slight throwback to the heyday of Amber when she first appeared on the B&B, but with a new twist!

On-Air On-Soaps caught up with one of the series boldest soap stars to talk about her current storyline which has her trying to twist the Spencer boys, Liam, and his dad Bill, around her finger for her own gain.  But, could she actually be falling in love with Liam? And, can she avoid being snuffed-out by his dear old dad?  Adrienne Frantz fills us in on Amber’s latest schemes and how she makes the gal one of the most outrageously fun characters to watch in daytime.

Later in our chat, we get a glimpse into Adrienne’s personal life, and her thoughts as she prepares to walk down the aisle with the love of her life, Scott Bailey, in the fall of this year.

Always refreshing, direct and good fun, and a girl who knows what to do with her God-given acting chops… here’s what Ms. Frantz had to say!

MICHAEL:

Now that we are seeing that Amber is being her opportunistic self… and the Amber you talked about portraying when you returned to B&B… did you know that this was where the story was going to go when Brad Bell (B&B EP and head writer) brought you back to the series?

ADRIENNE:

© JPI Studios

Yeah, I think Amber needed to get back to her roots.  Everybody loves the wild and crazy Amber and her being unpredictable, and that you don’t know what is going to happen with her.  I am very happy playing Amber the ways things are.

MICHAEL:

We have Carl and Tawny back in the mix now, too.  So, do you feel this storyline is in any way an Amber redo of what she had done previously?

ADRIENNE:

No, not at all.  This is like coming back into the picture, and she has her eyes on Liam. Before, it was she and Rick and a little love affair.  She was young and a kid, and even though her mother pushed her into it, she got pregnant from being wild and crazy.  She did not manipulate anyone to get her pregnant.  So I think this is a completely different story, and people will see that more as it unfolds.  I just love what we are doing.  It is a lot of fun.  And, it is a lot of fun to play in scenes with Don Diamont (Bill), and how much Bill hates Amber.  It’s good to have that arch-rivalry kind of deal.

MICHAEL:

That is really cool to see the two soap vets working together, but also the whole gas lighting of the Amber arc of the storyline!  How do you feel about the beach house scenes and the failed attempt on her life?  Do you think Bill will continue to try and scare her to death?

ADRIENNE:

I don’t know, maybe.  I think everyone has been enjoying doing it and shooting it, so we shall see what might happen next.  I think it’s a fun story for everyone and will definitely keep you intrigued, because nothing is going to happen like anyone thinks is going to happen, I can tell you that.

MICHAEL:

© JPI Studios

Give us the Amber back-story on how this was all set in motion.  It all originally started when she liked Oliver, right?

ADRIENNE:

Oliver is her buddy, or her “friend with privileges.”  And they were just having a good time, and then she tries to help him get Hope back, because she felt so bad about what she did.  Amber never does anything maliciously.  It is not something contrived.  She goes more or less, “Oh, God.  I didn’t think about what the consequences would be.”  So she was just helping out Oliver, and they hooked up one night and had some crazy sex, and Amber finds out a little while later she is pregnant.  She knows it’s Oliver’s kid and there is no doubt about that in her mind.  But Oliver is so in love with Hope, and she knows he wants Hope more than anything in the world.

MICHAEL:

And he has no money!

ADRIENNE:

And he has no money, but part of it is that he wants Hope more than anything and he wants that life, and Amber is really desperate for love in some way.  She wants someone to hold her and spend time with her, and have someone that cares about her.  Sometimes when you get a little desperate you do things, and sometimes they wind up another way just by accident.  The whole Liam thing she did not intend on saying, “Oh, this is your baby,” right away.  She was just having a little fun and went over to his house, and he woke up and he is like, “Oh, my Gosh.  We slept together!”   And Amber goes, “No, we didn’t.”  But then she is like, “Wow, that is a good idea.” And she did not know she was pregnant at the time.  So it’s Amber being Amber.  She never flat out admitted it, but she said, “We slept together.”  But then she did not flat out say that they had sex.  Liam thinks they had sex and then Amber ends up pregnant, and she does not know what to do.  First, she wants to tell Oliver.  Then she knows at the same time she can’t tell him, because it will ruin his relationship with Hope.  So she blurts out to Oliver that it is Liam’s kid and don’t worry about it.  So then, she is just weaving herself into a giant trap…as always!  I think people will get a kick out of all the twists and turns.  I am also so happy to be working with Andrea Evans (Tawny) again.  She adds such comedy to the show and she is just fantastic.

MICHAEL:

© JPI Studios

I know, and here comes Tawny and she is at her gold-digging best, and she wants to help Amber get the money!

ADRIENNE:

For Amber, more than anything she just wants to have a secure life for her child.  Since she has lost two children, there is no way she is going to lose this one, or let something happen to this kid.

MICHAEL:

That gives you such great sub-text to play.  Can you see Amber being a good mom?

ADRIENNE:

Oh, definitely.  I see her giving her all and herself to this child.  And that is the big difference.  She is not doing this for herself; she is doing this for her unborn child so the baby can have a good life.  She knows she did not have a father.  And with Liam, he did not have a life like that either.  He was not raised with a father, either.  So there are a lot of similarities, and with Amber, Liam can be himself, in a way.  He does not have to be all prim and proper like he is with Hope.  So it is a different type of relationship that they have.  He kind of does not see Amber as horrible as Hope sees her.

MICHAEL:

Coming up, she wants to dissuade Liam from Hope.

ADRIENNE:

© JPI Studios

Well, she wants Liam!  She knows that Liam is her way for her baby to have a good life, and that is what she is trying for the hardest…. to have her baby have a good life.  Liam is her target, Liam is in her eye, and that is it, and that is trouble.  Once Amber has her eye on you, that is trouble. (Laughs)

MICHAEL:

Do you think she has any romantic feelings toward Liam?

ADRIENNE:

I think she sees the way Liam is and how sweet and caring he is, and what a good person he is.  She wants so badly for someone to feel that way about her.  She is jealous of Hope. She wants what Hope has.  She wants somebody to love her like that.  She has feelings for Liam because she wants him to love her.

MICHAEL:

Do you think Amber is still attracted to Oliver?

ADRIENNE:

I think the thing with Oliver was not a “love attraction” thing.  They were just friends who were having sex.  He is her confidante and buddy.

© JPI Studios

MICHAEL:

You and Scott Clifton (Liam) are very interesting actors.  You both are very quirky, and I mean that in the most flattering way, as the performances are so original.  What is Scott like to work with?

ADRIENNE:

Scott and I have a great relationship together. We have a very special chemistry, and he is such a great actor.  It’s easy to work with him.

MICHAEL:

Do you feel you are a “quirky” performer?  How do you see yourself in this medium?

ADRIENNE:

I try to do my own thing. You have to be really confident in your character and really know what you are doing, and as an actress, trust your instincts.  If you can do that, you can create some gold.

MICHAEL:

How is working with Don Diamont?

ADRIENNE:

It is great!  Don’s character of Bill hates Amber, so it makes for fantastic television. Amber looks at him, and he does not intimidate her.  Bill Spencer likes everybody being intimidated by him.  He is in control of everyone and he can’t do that with Amber, and I think it drives him nuts!  She says to him, “Hey, grandpa!”  She does little things to get at him.  I think that is what makes her fun!

MICHAEL:

Is Carl infatuated with Amber?

ADRIENNE:

© JPI Studios

I don’t know! (Laughs) I think he is infatuated with Tawny. (Laughs)  I think he wants Tawny. It’s hysterical.

MICHAEL:

Is there one moment with Andrea since she came back to B&B, that you could tell our readers that the two of you had a moment where you cracked up, or went up on lines?

ADRIENNE:

Oh, my gosh, we are laughing 24/7. We have so much fun working together, and it’s almost as if we have never stopped working together.  She is the best mother ever! (Laughs) She just makes me laugh.  She is not afraid to dive into that character, whatsoever.  It’s like an anything goes kind of deal.

MICHAEL:

Amber and Liam made their first decision as parents last week on B&B, when they went for the baby’s first ultrasound.

ADRIENNE:

There are definitely big steps towards their relationship being made that Amber is really happy about.  She kind of feels she is doing the right thing at this moment…which means it will all backfire, and then be a lot of fun to watch! (Laughs)  No, seriously, I am really enjoying this.  I am glad that I am getting to be Amber the way she is intended to be.  It is a lot more fun than being all sweet and innocent all the time.  Being the wild and crazy gal was the way she was written in the first place, and so it now makes it a lot more fun for me to come back home.

MICHAEL:

Speaking of your CBS home, B&B just celebrated 24 years on the air.   So off the top of your head, what was your favorite B&B Amber moment of all-time?

Coutesy/CBS

ADRIENNE:

I would have to say, and this was years ago, when she was pregnant with Rick’s baby, and her baby died, and so she passed off another baby as her own.  I have to say those were some of my favorite moments.

MICHAEL:

But now she is in a way passing off another baby!

ADRIENNE:

But now, she is more prepared to be a mother, and she is now thinking of somebody else and not just herself.  I think she feels bad about what she is doing, and you never know if she could flip and just tell the truth.  A lot of times I think she just wants to blurt it out, and go, “Hey, I’m sorry.  I am not a bad person.”  I think that is why she and Oliver get along so well. A lot of people look at Amber like she is some evil person, but she is not.  She is misguided, and she never had a strong family to tell her what to do and not to do in her life.

MICHAEL:

I know coming up, Amber is going to use her sexual wiles to try and distract Liam from thinking about Hope.

ADRIENNE:

Maybe!  But when it comes to Amber, I think there is always the possibility of a flirtation and throwing herself out there to somebody.

MICHAEL:

Does she hate Hope at this point?

ADRIENNE:

© JPI Studios

I think she can’t stand everything that Hope represents.  She has been given everything in her life and Amber has had to work so hard.  And Hope just has been given this perfect little life, and so yeah, Amber cannot stand Hope!  She wants to have that life and no one has ever offered that to her.

MICHAEL:

How is Kim Matula (Hope) to work with?

ADRIENNE:

Oh, she is wonderful.  She is a delight to work with, and it’s fun being the character that makes the other girl cry!

MICHAEL:

You bad girl!

ADRIENNE:

Yes, I am a bad, bad girl. But it is more fun, I think, than playing the good girls. But, the good girls get to have their fun, too, but not as much fun as the bad girl.

MICHAEL:

How do you like the new opening sequence to B&B?

ADRIENNE:

I am really weird about change, but I like the new opening.

MICHAEL:

© JPI Studios

Are there any other projects on the horizon?  You were working so diligently on your music career and exploring other roles in films a few years back.  What is the status?

ADRIENNE:

Right now, I have a lot on my plate.  I am getting married this year, which is a huge thing!  But right now, I am focusing on Amber and I have good storyline coming up.  I am always up for doing different things, but I am really having fun with Amber right now.

MICHAEL:

So you and former Guiding Light star, Scott Bailey, are engaged and preparing to be wed.  What kind of wedding are you going to have?  Will it be big, or small and intimate?

ADRIENNE:

I think we are going to do a really big wedding.  We are getting married on 11-11-11.  So it’s going to be fun.  I will have all our families there and my B&B family…. all the B&Bers!

MICHAEL:

Since you are always original in fashion, have you found or worked on finding the knockout wedding dress for you?

ADRIENNE:

I have not even tried wedding dresses on yet, but I will do it.  I will do it.  I promise.

MICHAEL:

Why is Scott the guy for you?

ADRIENNE:

© JPI Studios

He is my soul mate and he fills me completely.  I get happy waking up and going to sleep knowing that I have found my soul mate, and that I get to be with my best friend for the rest of my life.  We should have done it earlier.  We were friends for years. You see, you never know.  So I am telling all the people out there, keep your eyes open for your best guy friend, because you never know.  We never kissed for seven years, and once I kissed him I knew he was my soul mate.  Our first response to each other was, “Why didn’t we do this years ago?”  And then three months after that, he is designing a ring for me. And then three months after that, he asked me to be his fiancé.

MICHAEL:

Scott is not too shabby on the eyes, either!

ADRIENNE:

Yeah, I know, right?  I know he is gorgeous.  It just sucks so much! (Laughs)  He is so wonderful, and I adore him.  I got the greatest guy ever, and he loves me so much and it is fantastic.  He loves me for exactly who I am, and that is amazing.

MICHAEL:

I also think it is a compliment to you that you have another special guy in your life, and that is Brad Bell.  The two of you seem to have an amazing and enduring professional collaboration.

ADRIENNE:

We have a great relationship and he is like a buddy.  He knows how to write Amber so well, and he knows how to push me to the limit of what I can do, and then he will write it for me, and push me to the limits.  Whether it is a big dramatic story or comedy, he lets me go with it.

MICHAEL:

Do you ever think Amber and Daniel were a good pairing when you were over at Y&R?

ADRIENNE:

I think so, but I think they could have gone in different directions with it, but they did make a good love story.  And, it is always fun to have a good love story.

MICHAEL:

Where is the little Kid… little D?

ADRIENNE:

It’s actually Deacon’s kid, and so when Deacon was in prison, she was taking him to a boarding school up in Ojai.

© JPI Studios

MICHAEL:

In closing, what would you say to the Amber fans to look forward to from her in April?

ADRIENNE:

I would say in April, to look forward to Amber opening up a whole new can of worms (Laughs) and sinking her teeth into whatever she wants.

MICHAEL:

But wait; will she still be in fear for her life from Bill?

ADRIENNE:

I don’t know. You are just going to have to wait and see.  There is always fear looming, especially when you are carrying around a big lie.