Ethan Pierce
Encyclopedia
Dr. Ethan Pierce is a fictional character on the New Zealand soap opera
Shortland Street
and was portrayed by Owen Black from August 2008 to January 2009 and again from May to June 2009. He arrived as the love interest of new character Brooke Freeman
(Beth Allen
).
streak, as well as thinly veiled dominating tendencies with his lovers, and has made a large number of enemies during his short time at Shortland Street. Exploiting any opportunity to get ahead and with no amount sucking up to the CEO, Ethan quickly rises through the ranks to become the head of the surgery department, against the strong recommendations of Chris Warner, whom Ethan had an almost instant enmity with. Ethan likes to live expensively, as evidenced by his taste in cars and wine, as well his extremely costly yet minimalist apartment. He doesn't hesitate to use his money, charm and position to get what he wants, and likes to eliminate his competition as soon as he can. He possesses a keen insight into the behaviour of others, which he often uses to manipulate people. He has proved to have a certain sway over Callum Mckay, as he has been able to convince him to suspend Maia Jeffries, after he spent some time antagonizing her when he realized that she had a crush on his girlfriend, Alice Piper.
When a member of the whitetails needed to be operated on Ethan was one of the few to show no reluctance in assisting in the surgery on a member of the gang that had caused so many problems for the hospital. When another member of the gang snuck into the hospital to kill the patient, Ethan ended up getting shot in the shoulder, however he managed to make a full recovery.
Despite his only real career-applicable skills being in the medical field, he intended to buy and own a bar, the same one that Kieran Mitchell wanted to buy as a companion to his own bar, The I.V. After attempting to outbid Kieran, Ethan eventually proposed that the two go into business together, with Kieran managing the bar, and Ethan effectively being a silent partner, which Kieran readily agreed to. He quickly discovered Kieran's gang connections, and has kept this information between the two of them, presumably waiting until such a time as he could use it to his own advantage.
Ethan kidnapped and killed Betty Crawford, an old woman who had been abandoned at the hospital, so that he could harvest her bones for Nesses Bio. This marked the darkest turn the character has made yet.
In the final episodes of 2008, things start to unravel for Ethan. His relationship with Alice becomes rockier than ever after he subtly attempts to break her will and make her into his willing subservient, as it became clear that he had done the same for Brooke in the past. During a confrontation between the two women in the penultimate episode at Ethan's apartment, Brooke, becoming overtly desperate in her attempts to get Ethan back, accesses his laptop to show Alice the many recordings of his sexual encounters with both Brooke, Alice, and many other women, via a secret camera in Ethan's bedroom. After showing Alice several videos that are dated during the time of her relationship with Ethan, Alice furiously orders her out. In the final episode, Alice confronts Ethan about this and it is revealed that he posts all his videos on a porn site, Mephisto Industries, making her an unwitting and unwilling porn star. Unapologetically informing Alice that she has a "huge fan base", and alluding to the fact that users of the site enjoy watching a serial killer survivor engaged in sexual intercourse, Ethan coldly chastises her for believing that their relationship had ever been anything real. After Alice attacks him in a fury, he hits her in the stomach and leaves.
Brooke is witness to a conversation in the staff room between Chris, Kip and Callum, and she informs them that Ethan isn't just a shareholder in Nesses Bio, the dodgy company that gave Yvonne her cancer through a bone graft, he owns the entire company. Tracey then walks in and assumes that they are talking about Betty, the woman Ethan murdered. Chris, Kip and Tracey add the facts together and realize that Ethan killed her, and they call the police. Callum attempts to stop Ethan as he hurriedly leaves the hospital, and after feigning remorse and a willingness to work the problem out, Ethan punches Callum in the face and makes his escape. Brooke stops him in the carpark and confesses her love for him, and he tells her that she is "the one", but he won't let her come with him, implying that he intends to leave the country.
As Don Lennox
, a hitman hired by Kieran to kill Ethan, ignores calls from Kieran to call off the hit, Ethan goes to see his friend, a funeral director who was involved in his schemes, and it is implied that he kills him via lethal injection, to ensure that he doesn't tell the police the truth.
Ethan returns to his apartment as both a drunk Alice and a furious Chris leave to confront him. Arriving to find his door open, Ethan assumes that Alice is still there, and proceeds to say further cruel things as he packs his bags and the evidence of his crimes. As he walks into the hallway to confront "Alice", he greets the real intruder, who remains unseen to the audience, with first a look of surprise and then a smirk that implies recognition. The intruder then pulls out a gun and shoots him multiple times, before throwing the gun on his dead body and leaving. Ethan managed to crawl out onto the beach where he died in Brooke Freemans arms. The Ferndale Homicide squad began investigating his murder.
was at the house that night. It turned out that Maia had killed Ethan but was under a mental breakdown, which was caused by all the hurt and grief he caused for those she loved. Maia and Alice avoided the police which caused sexual tension between the two which Alice ignored and when Yvonne found out Maia was the killer, she ignored her daughter. Maia went away and when she came back, she had obviously gone mentally insane once again and Yvonne was growing more concerned about her mental breakdown so she realized that she wants to forget that Maia killed Ethan and that he deserved to die. Maia was confined to a mental institution where she started to hallucinate Ethan telling her to confess. She eventually did confess and was arrested. She plead guilty but was acquitted for reasons of insanity.
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
Shortland Street
Shortland Street
Shortland Street is a New Zealand prime-time soap opera, first broadcast on Television New Zealand's TV2 on 25 May 1992. It is the country's longest-running drama and soap opera, being broadcast continuously for over 4500 episodes and 19 years, and is one of the most watched television programs in...
and was portrayed by Owen Black from August 2008 to January 2009 and again from May to June 2009. He arrived as the love interest of new character Brooke Freeman
Brooke Freeman
Brooke Freeman is a fictional character from the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street, played by Beth Allen. Brooke debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 24 July 2008. The role was written with Allen in mind to play her. Brooke arrived as a locum GP but later advanced in her career...
(Beth Allen
Beth Allen
Elizabeth "Beth" Allen has been acting since an early age and has appeared in several small productions and commercials since 1993. Her first major role was in Cloud 9's The Legend of William Tell in 1998, in which she played Princess Vara...
).
History
Ethan first appeared in 2008 a short while after Brooke Freeman whom he had an extremely complicated and twisted relationship with some time before either character appeared on the show. From the very beginning Ethan is portrayed as being very slick and charming, but possesses a dark, manipulativePsychological manipulation
Psychological manipulation is a type of social influence that aims to change the perception or behavior of others through underhanded, deceptive, or even abusive tactics. By advancing the interests of the manipulator, often at the other's expense, such methods could be considered exploitative,...
streak, as well as thinly veiled dominating tendencies with his lovers, and has made a large number of enemies during his short time at Shortland Street. Exploiting any opportunity to get ahead and with no amount sucking up to the CEO, Ethan quickly rises through the ranks to become the head of the surgery department, against the strong recommendations of Chris Warner, whom Ethan had an almost instant enmity with. Ethan likes to live expensively, as evidenced by his taste in cars and wine, as well his extremely costly yet minimalist apartment. He doesn't hesitate to use his money, charm and position to get what he wants, and likes to eliminate his competition as soon as he can. He possesses a keen insight into the behaviour of others, which he often uses to manipulate people. He has proved to have a certain sway over Callum Mckay, as he has been able to convince him to suspend Maia Jeffries, after he spent some time antagonizing her when he realized that she had a crush on his girlfriend, Alice Piper.
When a member of the whitetails needed to be operated on Ethan was one of the few to show no reluctance in assisting in the surgery on a member of the gang that had caused so many problems for the hospital. When another member of the gang snuck into the hospital to kill the patient, Ethan ended up getting shot in the shoulder, however he managed to make a full recovery.
Despite his only real career-applicable skills being in the medical field, he intended to buy and own a bar, the same one that Kieran Mitchell wanted to buy as a companion to his own bar, The I.V. After attempting to outbid Kieran, Ethan eventually proposed that the two go into business together, with Kieran managing the bar, and Ethan effectively being a silent partner, which Kieran readily agreed to. He quickly discovered Kieran's gang connections, and has kept this information between the two of them, presumably waiting until such a time as he could use it to his own advantage.
Ethan kidnapped and killed Betty Crawford, an old woman who had been abandoned at the hospital, so that he could harvest her bones for Nesses Bio. This marked the darkest turn the character has made yet.
In the final episodes of 2008, things start to unravel for Ethan. His relationship with Alice becomes rockier than ever after he subtly attempts to break her will and make her into his willing subservient, as it became clear that he had done the same for Brooke in the past. During a confrontation between the two women in the penultimate episode at Ethan's apartment, Brooke, becoming overtly desperate in her attempts to get Ethan back, accesses his laptop to show Alice the many recordings of his sexual encounters with both Brooke, Alice, and many other women, via a secret camera in Ethan's bedroom. After showing Alice several videos that are dated during the time of her relationship with Ethan, Alice furiously orders her out. In the final episode, Alice confronts Ethan about this and it is revealed that he posts all his videos on a porn site, Mephisto Industries, making her an unwitting and unwilling porn star. Unapologetically informing Alice that she has a "huge fan base", and alluding to the fact that users of the site enjoy watching a serial killer survivor engaged in sexual intercourse, Ethan coldly chastises her for believing that their relationship had ever been anything real. After Alice attacks him in a fury, he hits her in the stomach and leaves.
Brooke is witness to a conversation in the staff room between Chris, Kip and Callum, and she informs them that Ethan isn't just a shareholder in Nesses Bio, the dodgy company that gave Yvonne her cancer through a bone graft, he owns the entire company. Tracey then walks in and assumes that they are talking about Betty, the woman Ethan murdered. Chris, Kip and Tracey add the facts together and realize that Ethan killed her, and they call the police. Callum attempts to stop Ethan as he hurriedly leaves the hospital, and after feigning remorse and a willingness to work the problem out, Ethan punches Callum in the face and makes his escape. Brooke stops him in the carpark and confesses her love for him, and he tells her that she is "the one", but he won't let her come with him, implying that he intends to leave the country.
As Don Lennox
Don Lennox
Don Lennox was a fictional character in the soap opera Shortland Street. He was the soap's local mechanic and hitman. He appeared in both 2008 and 2009 and was portrayed by Chris Easly. Though Don only appeared in the show a few times, he featured in two prominent storylines and another similarly...
, a hitman hired by Kieran to kill Ethan, ignores calls from Kieran to call off the hit, Ethan goes to see his friend, a funeral director who was involved in his schemes, and it is implied that he kills him via lethal injection, to ensure that he doesn't tell the police the truth.
Ethan returns to his apartment as both a drunk Alice and a furious Chris leave to confront him. Arriving to find his door open, Ethan assumes that Alice is still there, and proceeds to say further cruel things as he packs his bags and the evidence of his crimes. As he walks into the hallway to confront "Alice", he greets the real intruder, who remains unseen to the audience, with first a look of surprise and then a smirk that implies recognition. The intruder then pulls out a gun and shoots him multiple times, before throwing the gun on his dead body and leaving. Ethan managed to crawl out onto the beach where he died in Brooke Freemans arms. The Ferndale Homicide squad began investigating his murder.
The Investigation
The police found a drunken Alice, a bewildered Chris Warner and an upset Brooke Freeman at Ethan's house and of course the body. Brooke and Alice instantly became the lead suspects. Alice and Brooke were both arrested at separate times for his murder. Alice went to fellow suspect Luke Durville for hypnotism in which she remembered Maia JeffriesMaia Jeffries
Maia Anne Jeffries is a fictional character on the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street. She was portrayed by Anna Jullienne from mid 2004 to early 2011, with the character starring in numerous high profile storylines alongside her on screen family....
was at the house that night. It turned out that Maia had killed Ethan but was under a mental breakdown, which was caused by all the hurt and grief he caused for those she loved. Maia and Alice avoided the police which caused sexual tension between the two which Alice ignored and when Yvonne found out Maia was the killer, she ignored her daughter. Maia went away and when she came back, she had obviously gone mentally insane once again and Yvonne was growing more concerned about her mental breakdown so she realized that she wants to forget that Maia killed Ethan and that he deserved to die. Maia was confined to a mental institution where she started to hallucinate Ethan telling her to confess. She eventually did confess and was arrested. She plead guilty but was acquitted for reasons of insanity.
Suspects in Ethan's murder
- Alice PiperAlice PiperAlison "Alice" Piper was a fictional character in the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street. She was played by actress Toni Potter.Alice worked as a nurse at Shortland Street Hospital in the Emergency Department...
- Used and abused by Ethan. Knew how to operate gun because of her teaching from Ethan - Callum McKayCallum McKayCallum McKay is a fictional character portrayed by actor Peter Mochrie in the TVNZ soap opera Shortland Street. He is a doctor and the Chief Executive Officer of Shortland Street Hospital.-Introduction:...
- Ethan convinced Callum to become a shareholder in his Nessis Bios business which caused Young Timothy Carlson to get H.I.V and Yvonne Jeffries to get Bone cancer which then Callum was given the blame and then on the day of his (Ethan's) death punched Callum in the nose - Chris WarnerChris WarnerDr. Christopher "Chris" Warner is a fictional character and current main protagonist on the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street. He is portrayed by Michael Galvin. He is the only original character to still be on the show....
- Knew what he did to Brooke and Betty - Don LennoxDon LennoxDon Lennox was a fictional character in the soap opera Shortland Street. He was the soap's local mechanic and hitman. He appeared in both 2008 and 2009 and was portrayed by Chris Easly. Though Don only appeared in the show a few times, he featured in two prominent storylines and another similarly...
- Hired by Kieran to take him out. - Kieran MitchellKieran MitchellKieran Mitchell is a fictional character on the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street who was portrayed by British actor Adam Rickitt through numerous high profile storylines from early 2007 to mid 2010....
- Knew what Ethan was doing to people's bones and what he did to Betty. Kieran show hate towards Ethan. - Maia JeffriesMaia JeffriesMaia Anne Jeffries is a fictional character on the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street. She was portrayed by Anna Jullienne from mid 2004 to early 2011, with the character starring in numerous high profile storylines alongside her on screen family....
- Hated him because of his personal vendetta against her. Once tried to strangle him, Ethan gave cancer to mother. Turned out to be the killer but was under a mental breakdown, which was caused all the hurt and grief he caused for those she loved. - Brooke FreemanBrooke FreemanBrooke Freeman is a fictional character from the New Zealand soap opera Shortland Street, played by Beth Allen. Brooke debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 24 July 2008. The role was written with Allen in mind to play her. Brooke arrived as a locum GP but later advanced in her career...
- Ethan played with her love for him but it was revealed that they dated for eight years, although the truth was off screen. - Luke DurvilleLuke DurvilleDr. Luke Durville is a fictional character on New Zealand's long-running soap opera, Shortland Street. Durville has been played by Gerald Urquhart since the character's first appearance on 14 September 2007 and appears sporadically each year often disappearing from four to eleven months at a...
- Generally hated Ethan and did not respect him as a surgeon.
Trivia
- A gun was symbolic in the character of Ethan as he took Alice to a shooting range in November 2008 which helped her release her anger. Ethan was later shot by a whitetail gang member in hospital but survived and in December Ethan's life was ended by a gun. A gun is a symbol of evil and thus it frequented a lot in Ethan's story lines.
- Ethan cannot swim as evidenced when he refused to go swimming with Alice and when he did, he nearly drowned.