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Amber Marshall is opening up about the tragic loss of Robert Cormier.
The “Heartland” star said the cast of the show was hit hard by the news of his death, but it hurt her on a personal level due to the story they were building between their characters.
“I was working very closely with him and we were building this story between the two characters. And I was really excited about where this story was going,” Marshall shared with ET’s Brittnee Blair. “So not only was his passing kind of was a surprise and a shock to all of us, but then going, okay, how do we move forward with this?”
The most important part in wrapping up Cormier’s character Finn Cotter’s storyline for the team was figuring out how to do it in a respectful way that honoured his work.
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“You know, we’re all hurting, but we also have a story to tell. So how do we move forward and honour him and his character that he was playing?” she continued. “But at the same time, continue the ‘Heartland’ momentum and the character had just lost her husband three years previous to this. So we can’t kill off another Amy guy, Right?”
The actress explained, “So we find a way to do this in just a graceful way that would represent Robert in the best light, the character in the best light, and allow Amy to move forward in that journey. So it was a challenge.”
Reflecting on the surreal moment when they were told of his death, Marshall said it was a sobering moment.
“This happened right when we were in the middle of filming. So it was a lot of different emotions at once. And, you know, life just happens. You never really know what is going to be in the mix. I think it showed all of us that we don’t know how long we have. None of us,” she recalled. “It’s just one of those things that you go through life every day and, you know, maybe you call up that friend that you haven’t talked to in a few months or apologize to someone that you’ve been holding a grudge against because you just never know.”
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The star concluded by advising everyone to make the most of the time they have while they’re alive.
“I also believe we all needed to be reminded of that. You know, you don’t have to go through that experience yourself to wake up and say, I want to be the best me that I can be. I want to be someone that if I’m gone tomorrow, I’m happy with the life I lived and how I left it off,” she added.