 Stenson believed it was a mistake to kill Max off, and "such an awful thing to happen to Steph", until she received "amazing feedback" about the storyline.In the aftermath, Tom asked Steph to be his mother, in a scene that then-executive producer Bryan Kirkwood deemed his favourite of the year.The interaction between the two was intended to represent "what "Hollyoaks" is all about - lots of heart, relationships, friendships, love and loss."