Chris McKenna on his Y&R exit:  I have to mourn Harding 

The Young and the Restless' Chris McKenna reveals he had quite a tough time letting Detective Mark Harding go but could possibly come back as his brother.

The Young and the Restless' Harding bit the literal bullet last week when Doug Davidson's Paul fatally shot the detective-turned-murderer, and it was a twist portrayer Chris McKenna says he definitely did not see coming.

"I was so surprised at first and had to digest it," the actor told Soap Opera Digest of his alter ego having killed Austin [Matthew Atkinson] and Courtney [Kelli Goss], a storyline that led to his dismissal from the show. "I have to mourn Harding. I mean, I love the guy. I helped make him, so I have a lot of affection for him. So, it was sad to see what happened to him and what he had done, but I just used that to make a convincing performance... During the time I've been on the show, you didn't see different sides to him, so near the end, you [got] to see him actually be broken and sad and filled with regret and conflict, but still that hard-ass you got to know. It was nice to make that all work."

However, that didn't change the actor's attempt to rewrite Harding's history. "Doug and I kept joking that we were going to change the script. 'What if I just don't shoot you?' And I was like, 'Yeah, if I don't go down, what are they going to do? Fire me?'" he jokes, adding, "It ended up being a fun day, but also bittersweet. After we were done, they made an announcement and there was applause and people were hugging me. They were upset that I was leaving, so it was very nice."

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Of course, as it is a soap opera, it may not be the last viewers see of McKenna. "Harding implied that he may have a brother, so you never know..." the actor muses of a possible return. "Y&R was the nicest group of people to work with. They were such a delight, so of course, I would be open to [returning]."

What do you think of Harding having been revealed as Austin and Courtney's murderer? Would you like to see McKenna return to Genoa City as Harding's brother? Share your thoughts in the Comments section below, on our message boards, or by submitting Feedback.To stay up-to-date on the latest soap news, be sure to like us on Facebook and follow @soapcentral on Twitter.

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