He just can’t win
Quinton Nyathi doesn’t have a leg to stand on when Jessica demands custody of their son.
Quinton puts his foot down when his babymamma makes demands. Weekdays e.tv (*194) 19:30
If you bring up what a disastrous year 2016 has been, no one’s going to be nodding harder than Quinton (Brighton Ngoma). “Every time we talk, he’s in a state of complete devastation and he’s been betrayed by absolutely everyone in his life,” laughs Brighton. “It’s just frustration, and ‘why me’ and blaming the world.” Shortly after Quinton hit a desperately low point and fell into bed with his cousin Mangi’s (Kagiso Modupe) wife Dintle (Mapaseka Koetle) in July this year, he crashed while driving drunk with his young son Beyon (Cayde Molokoane) in the car. That shocking incident kicked Quinton back onto the wobbly path to sobriety and he even wrestled back control of his company NFH from his mother Layla (Natasha Sutherland) on Tuesday 4 October. But change may come too little, too late when Beyon’s mom Jessica (Melissa Allison) starts pursuing full custody of their son on Monday 31 October…
NOT WITH MY SON
There’s no way that Quinton is going to just allow Jessica to move overseas and take Beyon with. He tells Jessica’s new boyfriend Dennis (Charlton Brown) on Tuesday 1 November that she can leave with his blessing – but not with their son. “It’s an emotional response initially, it’s an ‘over my dead body’ situation,” explains Brighton. As a child abandoned by his own father, it means absolutely everything to Quinton to be the kind of dad he never had. “Seeing your son be happy with another man, like this new boyfriend of Jessica’s, I think anybody would feel deep down like they had failed. There’s a moment where Quinton says, ‘A boy needs his father,’ in reference to Beyon and Beyon leaving for the United States with Jessica. Ultimately he’s talking about himself,” adds Brighton.
MOM ON MY SIDE
Quinton has one surprising ally in his cause to keep Beyon – Layla. But Layla is supporting her son. things are still decidedly frosty on Quinton’s side following his discovery of her secret partnership with Lucas Nyathi (Sello Maake Ka-Ncube) and his girlfriend Naledi’s (Dineo Moeketsi) humiliating attempt at a mother-son reconciliation dinner on Monday 17 October. “It’s always a bit of a ping pong situation with him and his mom,” explains Brighton. “In the beginning it’s like, ‘Don’t talk to me and don’t give me parental advice. You’re the last person on Earth to give me advice on parenting.’ But eventually he listens and they get closer.”
PULLING THE THREAD
When Layla finds out on Monday 7 November that Mangi lied to protect Quinton after the car crash and that Quinton was driving drunk with Beyon, Scandal! fans will know that it’s just a matter of time before Jessica beats that nail into the coffin of Quinton’s custody suit. Because, let’s face it, it’s not just that one incident. In January this year, Quinton found out that his wife Thembeka (Masasa Mbangeni) had deliberately hid the fact that Jessica’s baby Beyon is his son. Then in February, Thembeka went on trial for murder, and in May, Quinton realised to his horror that not only had Thembeka drugged him on their wedding night in May 2015 so that she could hide the corpse of her murder victim, she was also faking her pregnancy.
All the drama sent Quinton into a downward spiral of reckless drinking and drug abuse in June 2016. “He acted out by doing drugs and going out with various girls. Going to Ibiza when he was supposed to be going on some business trip, doing drugs on a plane, ODing and ending up in hospital (which cost him his job as CEO of NFH in July)… Jessica somehow finds out about all of that,” says Brighton.
CAN QUINTON LET GO?
And once Jessica finds out, the battle is really going to be between Quinton’s pride and his ability to let go and allow his son to be happy without him. It looks like 2016’s reign of terror isn’t over for Quinton Nyathi just yet.