EastEnders' Max and Abi Branning
Max Branning's daughter Abi, played by Lorna Fitzgerald BBC/Kieron McCarron

A new Eastenders festive trailer shows a desperate Max Branning (Jake Wood) as his life starts to spiral out of control. If the teaser is anything to go by, it looks like Max is headed for dark times this Christmas.

Last week, viewers were shocked to see his nearly two-year long masterplan fall apart as he was duped by James Willmott-Brown (William Boyde) before getting fired.

Max had been in cahoots with Wilmott-Brown to tear down Albert Square and build luxury flats . But when the secret unfolds, his family casts him aside and Willmott-Brown stabs him in the back.

An emotional Max broke down in tears before his daughters Lauren (Jacqueline Jossa) and Abi (Lorna Fitzgerald) and his brother Jack (Scott Maslen), saying how he felt betrayed by them all.

But even after suffering such heavy consequences, Max seems determined to carry on with his vengeance.

Discussing his character's future, Wood recently spoke to Radio Times. He said: "It's non-stop action. Max is consumed by revenge. He wants to kill Ian and Phil and everyone who's wronged him. In his mind, he's justified, but he takes it too far."

The brief but dramatic trailer shared on the Eastenders Twitter account, also showed the mysterious villain Aidan Maguire (Patrick Bergin) watching on as Mick and Linda renew their vows.

The teaser ends with a shot of a stony-faced Max standing in the rain.

The Tweet was accompanied by the message: "As Max's secrets start to unravel he desperately tries to claw himself out of an impossible situation..."

The BBC soap's latest spoilers have revealed that after his terrible secret is revealed during the Christmas episode, Max is set for a dramatic showdown with Stacey Fowler (Lacey Turner).

Before her relationship with Martin Fowler, Stacey had an affair with father-in-law Max. The two are set to face off again this festive season.