Max Bowden has reflected on his time on EastEnders, claiming that it may be ‘the hardest gig in acting’.
The actor played the sixth incarnation of Ben Mitchell on the BBC soap between 2019 and 2024, taking over from previous star Harry Reid.
Ben was written out of the show last year, with Max later admitting that ‘the character was tired, I was tired, they [the producers] were probably tired of me being tired’.
Speaking to A Youngish Perspective, Max detailed how his life had changed since leaving the soap and its schedule behind.
He said: ‘My life has changed a lot recently, I don’t party anymore, I’m just interested in being a better dad, and a better person overall’
Max continued: ‘EastEnders is one of the hardest gigs, if not the hardest gig, in acting, because a lot of the time you have to strip away your technique and rely on impulse.
‘I carry quite a lot of “the method” in my approach to my acting, and it’s easy to get a bit lost in the work as a result.
“It’s shaped me in that I no longer approach anything with fear. It’s a brilliant place to hone your skills, so I’m very grateful for my time there,” the former Waterloo Road star added.
Max – who is Max is now starring in a touring stage production of Sebastian Faulks’ 1993 war novel Birdsong – previously discussed experiencing burnout towards the end of his time playing Ben during an episode of The Lewis Nicholls Show last year,
‘The important thing was my time was ready. I was very tired and, like I said, I wasn’t me, I wasn’t’, he responded when asked about whether he was sacked from the show, or chose to walk away.
‘The Max sat in front of you today was kind of a ghost, and they recognised that – I recognised that.
‘From an honest perspective, I think yeah, a lot of it was that I needed to go for a bit. I needed to go work on me, get myself back to a place of really good mental health, focus on healing and also be a dad.’
Max’s on screen exit from the soap saw Ben Mitchell sent to a prison in America for fraud.
Prior to this, he was involved in a hugely powerful and emotional storyline that saw Lola Pearce (Danielle Harold), the mother of Ben’s daughter Lexi (Isabella Brown), die after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.
EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday at 7.30pm on BBC One or stream first from 6am on iPlayer.
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