Actors that just leave, and don't return

[JaneDoe]

Yeah, they think that because they are popular on an Aussie soap that they have what it takes to make it big in Hollywood movies, when in reality, they probably don't. There's so much competition, it's a cut-throat world and most of them don't make it. It's a bit different being a star in a soap with a few million viewers to being big in Hollywood, loads of soap stars end up doing panto because they can't find any other acting work beside small bit-parts in the odd drama series here and there.

Just look at Holly Valance, she thought she was going to make it big, she left Neighbours and released a single which sold fairly well I think, but then the next time we saw her she was on the Reverse Charge adverts! I think she's doing a film now, a movie version of Dead Or Alive Beach Volleyball or something!

Well she acted in the hit tv show Prison Break as Nika Volek, the wife of the main character Michael Schofield. Plus she was also in CSI. Heard of that show at all???

[ste]

I've always wondered, people like Richie Gudgeon, Bruce Roberts etc if Home and Away wanted them to come back for a 6 week guest stint, whether or not they'd accept.

Why would we want Bruce Roberts back? lol. Unless it was something to do with sacking Jack for being a lousy cop. That would be ok.

[TabbyCool]

Yeah, they think that because they are popular on an Aussie soap that they have what it takes to make it big in Hollywood movies, when in reality, they probably don't. There's so much competition, it's a cut-throat world and most of them don't make it. It's a bit different being a star in a soap with a few million viewers to being big in Hollywood, loads of soap stars end up doing panto because they can't find any other acting work beside small bit-parts in the odd drama series here and there.

Just look at Holly Valance, she thought she was going to make it big, she left Neighbours and released a single which sold fairly well I think, but then the next time we saw her she was on the Reverse Charge adverts! I think she's doing a film now, a movie version of Dead Or Alive Beach Volleyball or something!

Well she acted in the hit tv show Prison Break as Nika Volek, the wife of the main character Michael Schofield. Plus she was also in CSI. Heard of that show at all???

Never seen Prison Break, didn't know she'd been in CSI, don't watch it. I just remember seeing her on the Reverse Charge adverts and thinking that surely she could do better than that, it was pretty cringeworthy!

[Tulip]

Kate Garven lives in Britain whoever wanted to know.

Maybe actors are doing stuff, you just don't hear about it. Not all of them leave to pursue an acting career. Some leave just because they want a change. Yes, others may want to try a get a bigger name for themselves and that's a gamble but in the end it's their lives.

There was a section in the old Inside Soap magazines about Where are they now? finding actors who left soaps and interviewing them on life since they left. A lot leave and get "normal" jobs. Lots of them said stuff like "my time on [so and so soap] was fun and I enjoyed it but I have a different life now". I guess after being 3 or 4 years on the same show, people may want to just get out and see the world or explore or something and just have a go at different things...maybe make the most of the money they've got from Home and Away.

I think how much you hear of them afterwards depends on how big a star they were on Home and Away and how much their exit was publicised. Kate Garven wasn't the biggest star so we didn't hear a lot about her, whereas someone like Tammin Sursok or Bec Cartwright was a big star on the show, so there's often articles about what they're doing now.

[alexx]

We don’t hear a lot about Tempany D. and Kirsty W. (Seline and Chloe) and they were pretty big. But you know who we hear virtually nothing at all on; ex-male cast members...especially from way back when.

[Sunny Girl]

What ... You mean we never hear anything about people like Julian McMahon, Craig McLauchlin and Guy Pearce ???

[Tulip]

Tempany Deckert was in Girl Talk magazine a couple of years ago because she was writing a series of stories about girls who wanted to be actresses.

Kristy Wright was in Above the Law when she left.

[Loz]

It stands to reason that not many H&A stars will go on to bigger things because a large percentage are on the show during their teenage years - they're 'discovered' seemingly out of nowhere and suddenly they're 'actors', or that's how it seems. But they often don't have a history of acting prior to the show, so in my mind being a teen H&A star doesn't automatically make them actors, it makes them lucky teenagers who landed themselves an acting job - sometimes just because their face fits, it seems.

Whereas you look at cast members who join the show in their twenties or later and they'll have studied acting, or they'll have been doing theatre and smaller TV roles for years. They're the ones who have the best chance of maintaining an acting career, really, because their roles have usually been awarded on the strength of more than a pretty face and 'potential'.

[ter06]

I think that when soap actors become big stars and the most popular characters in their show they then think that they are too good for the show and need to go onto bigger and better things. What they dont seem to realise is that soaps are the highest rating shows on TV and they will probably never get more famous than they are in the soap. This is not just a problem in Oz(Tammin Sursok, Christie Hayes, Holly Valance) but also in UK soaps (Adam Rickett, Jack Ryder, Jessie Wallace), and the lists could go on and on.

There are obviously a few exceptions like Kylie and Dannii who have proved to have real staying power. But in twenty years time do you think people will talk about Tammin Sursok's or Natalie Bassingthwaite's music careers the way we now do about the Minogues? Highly unlikely.

Dannii Minogue has previously expressed how disappointed she is never to be asked back for the reunions. Apparantley she really wanted to take part in the cruise ship disaster storyline but wasnt asked!

[Marc EH]

Whatever happened to.....Tammin Sursok?