Coronation Street star Charlie De Melo has taken the step of slamming his character Imran Habeeb amid reports that he's leaving the soap.
Charlie, who has played the solicitor since 2017, branded Imran and 'selfish' and 'self serving', as he spoke to the media about his current secret baby storyline.
When the star first arrived on the famous cobbles as ladies' man Imran, the character was torn between the Battersby sisters Leanne and Toyah.
He has since settled down with Toyah.
But in September he went off the rails when Kelly Neelan, the teenager they took in as foster carers, was jailed after being wrongly accused of murdering Seb Franklin.
Imran, who represented Kelly at the trial, had a one night-stand with Seb's grieving mum Abi which they have both hidden from their unsuspecting partners.
And now their fling looks set to be exposed after Abi secretly gave birth to a baby boy at 28 weeks without any idea that she was pregnant, and the penny drops with Imran that he's the father.
Asked about his character Charlie told us: "I certainly think Imran is (a selfish character). I think he’s far more selfish than he would let on.
"One of the few things you’re told when you’re starting out as an actor is that you’re never really supposed to judge your characters, you’re supposed to go into it with a neutral head.
"But I feel like I’ve been doing this for long enough that I’m allowed to have an opinion on him now."
He continued: "I think he presents himself as heroic, and he wants to be seen as heroic - but I don’t think anything he does, really, is selfless.
"In regards to his white knight syndrome of wanting to kind of protect the innocent and be the one that supplies justice to the street, I think it’s self serving.
"And he’s shown that when he has done wrong to the people that he professes to love and to be closest to, he does everything he can to avoid responsibility.
"He will eschew it and he will duck away, he’ll hide, he will lie."
In October, as Imran and Toyah received the happy news that they were going to be fostering a four-year-old called Elsie, he turned nasty as his barrister ex wife Sabeen blackmailed him into helping her to free gangster Harvey Gaskell.
In an attempt to track down his aunt Sharon he stole her former foster mum Rita Tanner's mobile phone, but was caught out when is started ringing.
"Even with the legendary Barbara Knox, Rita, he tried to slip one past her. It’s the markings of someone that is self serving," added Charlie.
"His own ends seem to be more important to him than anything else, and the fact that that includes this loving family unit, that is almost secondary."
Next week when counsellor Toyah, who has been helping relapsed addict Abi behind closed doors following the birth, talks about an 'ex client' he guesses who she is referring to.
He tracks Abi down at the hospital where she admits that he’s the father of her baby.
In shock, Imran asks to see his son as they turn to see Toyah watching from the corridor.
And Charlie this is the moment the 'walls start to close in' for his character.
It was recently reported that the star was leaving the soap.
According to The Sun, Charlie is set to head off to pastures new and look for new challenges away from the Corrie cobbles.
The publication reported a source close to the soap actor said that while Charlie had "loved his time on the soap" he believes that now "the time is right to try new things."
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