Coronation Street gets Hollywood treatment as Joel star reveals stunt with epic technology

Coronation Street pulled out all the stops for bad guy Joel Deering’s explosive exit.

The soap kicked off an epic whodunnit last month involving sicko solicitor Joel (Calum Lol). As fans will recall, he rocked up as a good guy in 2023 and struck up a romance with Dee-Dee Bailey (Channique Sterling-Brown).

However, his true colours quickly came to light. In a shock twist, it was revealed that he had a history of grooming and abusing young girls, including Lauren Bolton (Cait Fitton) - who he attempted to kill, before she went on the run for months.

Joel’s crimes were eventually revealed - and at the end of September, his body was found in a local river. However, it was later determined by a pathologist that Joel had died before going into the water.

Many residents have become suspects over the past few weeks, including Dee-Dee, and even Carla Connor (Alison King).

Lauren, Max and Joel in Corrie
Coronation Street pulled out all the stops for bad guy Joel Deering’s explosive exit -Credit:Danielle Baguley ITV

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However, during Friday’s instalment (November 15) Joel’s killer was unveiled. The epic flashback episode revealed the true events of that day, and Joel's final moments. And in a huge twist, it was confirmed that it was Lauren who was the one who killed him.

In gripping scenes, Joel was tracked down by a vengeful Max Turner (Paddy Beaver) on a railway track after being hit by a crow back by Dee Dee Bailey (Channique Sterling-Brown).

Things got tense between Max and Joel as the sinister solicitor started making derogatory comments about Lauren. As Mac stuck up for his girlfriend, Joel grabbed him and tried strangling him before out of nowhere Lauren appeared and whack her abuser over the head with a rock and killed him.

The pair later decided to dispose of Joel's body in the river. Both Max and Lauren were taken into the police station separately and questioned by Kit Green (Jacob Roberts) after coming forward to protect Lauren.

Coronation Street
The soap opted for major Hollywood technology for the jaw-dropping episode. -Credit:Danielle Baguley ITV

It turns out the soap opted for major Hollywood technology for the jaw-dropping episode. Speaking to Reach and other press, Joel actor Calum shared what it was like to film the showdown scene using some rather fancy technology.

“It was as if we were filming a movie,” he shared. The soap star went on: “One of the scenes we spent about 12 hours shooting and we’ve got all these different cameras and green screens and special effects. It was incredible.”

And it turns out that Calum and the rest of the Corrie cast were in the company of major Hollywood stars while filming. He explained: “Where we filming, it was Peaky Blinders movie, House of Guinness, these big Hollywood films, and then us.”

Coronation Street
Joel's final moments were revealed on Friday -Credit:Danielle Baguley ITV

The technology was the same one used for the exit of Kelly Neelan (Millie Gibson) in 2022. Talking about filming with that type of technology and the volume wall, Calum said: “It was this huge black room, the ceiling was probably 70 feet high.

“And it’s just this massive semi-circle of screens and then your set in the middle. We had this long railway bridge that we built, and that’s on a table that turns.”

Calum went on: “So instead of the camera moving, the train track moves and the whole background is synched to the camera. So wherever the camera moves, the background moves as if the camera’s moving in the real place. It’s crazy, but it’s really cool.”

Coronation Street airs Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX

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