 Sarker's return was announced on 7 September 2017 by series producer Lucy Raffety, who stated that Sarker would make a "sensational comeback" for one episode in early 2018, one-and-a-half years after her departure in episode 995 of the drama.Producers did not initially reveal Zoe's reasons for returning, although confirmed that she would be involved in a story with Max.Sarker felt that Max and Zoe's relationship was not correctly concluded when she left the series and believed that this episode would conclude the storyline.