Westside Love Match Todd's Hubby Joins The Cast

When the director calls ‘cut’, their hearts go on!

- Marilynn Mclachlan

They live together, play together, travel together and work together, but this season’s Westside is the first time actor Todd Emerson and husband Kip Chapman have ever acted together.

And while Todd, 35, is a veteran of the hit Three show as criminal Bjelke “Bilkey” van Heeder, it’s a first for Kip, 38, who is fiercely passionate about his role of Will, a doctor who has HIV.

Set in the ’80s, it’s a time filled with homophobia and his character is unable to practice medicine because of the virus, and Kip hopes audiences will see how backward thinking New Zealand was at the time.

“We haven’t gone far enough yet, but we should definitely celebrate our successes and honor those who fought for those successes,” he asserts. “The generation before us fought for our right to wed, and Todd and I got married and we acknowledge their effort.”

The creative duo plays an on-screen couple, with Bilkey looking after Will. It was an experience they both relished.

“It was so great to have him around,” Todd enthuses. “I felt quite proud of having Kip there because he was doing such a fantastic job and it was also fun being able to show him what it was like after years of telling him stories about the people on set. It was like having a ‘bring your husband to work’ day!”