Soap Opera Digest: The revelations at the Nurses’ Ball have deepened the connection between Emma and Gio, but they’ve been pretty tight for a while now. How would you describe the nature of their connection?
Braedyn Bruner: I think that Gio is someone that Emma didn’t even know that she needed, but she 100 percent did. And at this point in their relationship, I’m not sure she would know what to do without him in Port Charles. He’s the only person that I feel like really levels her and meets her where she’s at and kind of challenges her in all of the right ways. He’s very sweet and patient, and he sees her for who she is, and I think that’s such a great dynamic to watch. I would call it “polarizingly perfect,” even. They’re a bit yin and yang, but it works really really well.
Digest: Emma has been there for Gio every step of the way since he found out the truth of his parentage; she slipped right into the role of support system. What is motivating her to be the one making sure he’s not going through this upheaval alone?
Bruner: I mean, it’s Gio! I think she would drop anything for him. She’s never seen him upset before; I don’t think anyone has seen him this upset before. And it breaks her heart because she loves people and wants to help people, but again, this is her person. I don’t think she knows it yet — romantically speaking, I mean, but she loves him, whether that’s in a friend way or more. Also, she knows that he was there for her when nobody else was, so that’s just like muscle memory for her. It’s like, “I have to be be there for him. Nothing in my life matters more in this moment than being there for him when his whole world has just turned upside down.”
Digest: It’s interesting to hear you say that Emma sees Gio as her person. Certainly, fans have picked up on the sweet relationship they’ve been building and the chemistry between the characters, but do you think that anything of that nature has occurred to Emma?
Bruner: I think she would by lying to herself if she said there hadn’t been moments where she’s stopped and been like, “Do I like you as more than a friend?” I think there are a mix of things that have gotten in the way of her [acknowledging her growing feelings for Gio], but I think the main one is that she worries that she’s not good enough for him. I think she worries that she might be too much for him. But also, she doesn’t want to ruin their friendship. He’s been so good to her that there’s always that fear of, “If we make this something more, I could potentially lose you.” And that’s really scary to her. But I think that she’s definitely thought about it, for sure.
Digest: What is it like to work with Giovanni Mazza (Gio)?
Bruner: Oh, my gosh — he’s so much like Gio. I mean, Gio is Gio! He’s so sweet and so funny and obviously incredibly musically talented, and we hang out a lot outside of work as well. He’s become one of my best friends on the show and off the show, so I think that’s just a little bit of life imitating art.
Digest: As someone who’s diving into the soap world for the first time, are you excited at the prospect of Gio and Emma developing a romantic relationship? Young love is pretty important to daytime, after all.
Bruner: Oh my goodness, absolutely. I mean, what’s a soap without love? I love how slow they’ve been taking it, honestly, I love that we’re developing as friends first before kind of jumping into a relationship. I think that’s very interesting as a viewer to watch, as well. That’s the kind of comments I’ve been getting from my own family — “Oh, we love that you’re building this friendship dynamic first, it’s been really fun to watch.” I’m very excited about it, and I couldn’t ask for a better scene partner to do it with, either. Gio is such a great actor, such a great performer in general, and it’s just been great and so fun to do this with him.
GIOVANNI MAZZA, BRAEDYN BRUNERDisney/Bahareh Ritter
