Emmerdale spoilers: Ross Barton victim of acid attack in 'devastating' Joe Tate twist
EMMERDALE have confirmed a “devastating” acid attack storyline for Ross Barton in coming episodes.
Emmerdale spoilers: Ross Barton victim of acid attack in 'devastating' Joe Tate twist
Emmerdale: Joe hints at threat towards Ross
Ross (played by Michael Parr) will find himself caught in the crossfire of Debbie Dingle’s (Charley Webb) revenge plot against Joe Tate (Ned Porteous).
As she takes her plan to take down the billionaire businessman in upcoming episodes, Debbie hires a man to take revenge on Joe on her behalf.
Her initial plan is to buy drugs from Holly Barton’s (Sophie Powles) old dealer Simon McManus (Liam Ainsworth) and plant them on Joe at a party so he is arrested.
But when Graham Foster (Andrew Scarborough) finds out what they’re planning, he quickly steps in to stop Joe from getting into trouble.
Emmerdale: Cain and Debbie plan to plant drugs on Joe Tate
Emmerdale: Joe Tate fires Ross when he finds he's working with Debbie
A furious Debbie then asks Simon to beat up Joe in exchange for money, hoping that he will be scared away from the village.
Simon agrees but ends up targeting Ross in a case of mistaken identity.
Ross is fired by Joe when he learns that he has been secretly working with Debbie.
Taking revenge, Ross steals the keys to Joe’s car to teach him a lesson but he will no doubt regret his actions.
Emmerdale: Ross steals the keys to Joe's car to teach him a lesson
When he steps out of the vehicle in the village later in the day, Simon mistakes him for Joe and throws acid in his face, leaving Ross screaming out in agony.
Speaking about the upcoming storyline, soap star Michael said it was a “big responsibility” and the long-running ITV series wanted to “raise awareness” about the consequences of an attack.
“It’s a big responsibility and one that I was very nervous about taking on,” the actor explained.
“I know it’s a reality for some people and it’s so important to get it right and do the story justice.”
Emmerdale: Debbie learns that Simon has targeted Ross instead of Joe
Emmerdale: Rebecca wakes from her coma and tries to remember the car crash
He went on to add: “The Emmerdale team have done extensive research and we really want to raise awareness of the devastating consequences an attack like this has on a person’s life.”
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the village, Rebecca White (Emily Head) wakes up from her coma and desperately tries to remember what happened on the day of the car crash that killed her sister Chrissie (Louise Marwood) and Lawrence (John Bowe).
Lachlan (Thomas Atkinson) will be left worried as he fears that she could expose his involvement in the accident.
Emmerdale airs weekdays on ITV at 7am.