Home and Away stars who made it in Hollywood
Some of our biggest stars in Hollywood have humble beginnings in Summer Bay. Here’s how their careers started.
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Home and Away is one of the most successful shows on Australian television.
The long-running soap has consistently maintained high ratings since it first premiered 33 years ago and it’s also produced some of the biggest stars in Hollywood over the years.
Since the first episode aired in 1988, the Channel 7 show has served as a career stepping stone for the likes of A-list actors Chris Hemsworth, Naomi Watts and Isla Fisher who all got their start on the popular drama.
Here are all of the stars who went from Summer Bay to Hollywood.
Chris Hemsworth - Kim Hyde
Hollywood movie star Chris Hemsworth was initially turned down when he first auditioned for a spot on Home and Away.
A little-known actor from Melbourne at the time, Hemsworth, who had appeared on Neighbours, tried out for the role of Robbie Hunter but failed to impress producers.
In 2004, he auditioned for a different role as Hunter’s friend, Kim Hyde, which he played for three years before making his mark in Hollywood.
Since then, the father-of-three has built a lucrative empire and become a household name mostly thanks to his Marvel Comics superhero character Thor.
He has also appeared in other blockbuster films including Ghostbusters, Men in Black: International and Snow White and the Huntsman.
Hemsworth, 38, previously credited the long-running soap for his success.
“I loved Home and Away and I credit everything I do to it,” he once said.
“I was 19 when I started working on that show. I had such a great time.”
Hemsworth is married to Fast and the Furious star Elsa Pataky and they live in Byron Bay after ditching Hollywood to give their children a more grounded upbringing.
Naomi Watts - Julie Gibson
At age 14, Mosman High School student Naomi Watts began acting lessons and was featured in TV commercials before being cast in her very first Australian film, For Love Alone.
She landed the role of wheelchair-bound woman, Julie Gibson, on Home and Away in 1991, which lasted for 19 episodes.
Watts also appeared in the award-winning series Brides of Christ before moving to Hollywood in the early 1990s with the help of another rising actor at the time, Nicole Kidman.
While she initially struggled to find work, she was encouraged by Kidman not to give up on her dreams and was later cast in a lead role in the 2001 blockbuster film Mulholland Drive which marked her rise to fame.
Since then she has appeared in dozens of major films including The Ring, King Kong and 21 Grams, which earned her one of two Academy Award nods.
Watts, 53, lives in New York with her two children who she shares with her former partner actor, Liev Schreiber.
Heath Ledger - Scott Irwin
Heath Ledger dropped out of high school when he was 16 to pursue his dream of becoming an actor.
In 1997, the Perth-native was cast in the role of bad boy Scott Irwin on Home and Away and filmed for nine episodes before moving to Hollywood.
He eventually landed dream jobs in blockbusters like 10 Things I Hate About You, The Patriot and a lead role in A Knight’s Tale.
However, it was the 2008 Batman film The Dark Knight which marked a defining role for the actor, who tragically died at age 28 from an accidental overdose of prescription medications before its release.
Ledger played The Joker, which earned him a posthumous Academy Award Best Supporting actor and his character portrayal is regarded by some as the best in history.
Isla Fisher - Shannon Reed
Isla Fisher made her debut as student, Shannon Reed, who was bisexual and battled an eating disorder in 1994.
She got her start in TV commercials at the age of 9 before landing a role on the soap a decade later, which later earned her two Logie nods.
Fisher was also a published author, having written two teenage novels but chose to focus on her first love - acting.
After three years on Home and Away, Fisher trained at a prestigious theatre school in Paris (L’École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq) before getting her big break in Hollywood on the 2002 film Scooby-Doo.
Her breakout role came in 2005 in Wedding Crashers followed by Confessions of a Shopaholic and she has appeared in countless films since.
Fisher, 45, is married to A-list actor Sacha Baron Cohen and they share three children.
Simon Baker - James Hudson
Born in Tasmania, Simon Baker was raised between Sydney and Lennox Head and went to school at Ballina High School and Trinity Catholic College.
A surfer at the time, Baker began acting by chance in the early 1990s after he was asked to audition for a TV commercial while accompanying his friend, who was trying out for the same gig.
He went from starring on E Street and A Country Practice to playing James Hudson on Home and Away in 1993 before moving to Hollywood.
He has appeared in notable TV shows and films over the years including The Devil Wears Prada but is best known for his role as Patrick Jane in The Mentalist.
Baker, 52, split with his wife of 29 years, actor Rebecca Rigg, last year and they share three children.
The pair previously both starred in the hit show E Street.
Melissa George - Angel Parrish
Former national roller skating champion, Melissa George, played teenage runaway Angel Parrish from 1993-1996.
George initially found work as a teenage model in her native Perth before becoming a full-time actor on the soap and later won two Logie awards for her portrayal of Parrish.
In 1997 she moved from Sydney to Los Angeles and the following year, she was cast in the movie Dark City with Kiefer Sutherland and Jennifer Connelly.
She has appeared in more than 50 films and TV shows collectively including a brief stint on Friends, Grey’s Anatomy and The Good wife.
George, 45, is a mother to two children, who she shares with her ex partner, French entrepreneur, Jean-David Blanc, and she lives in Paris.
In 2012, she was criticised when she appeared to take issue with being asked about Home and Away years after leaving the show.
“I don’t need credibility from my country any more, I just need them all to be quiet. If they have nothing intelligent to say, please don’t speak to me anymore. I’d rather be having a croissant and a little espresso in Paris or walking my French bulldog in New York City,” she said.
Isabel Lucas - Tasha Andrews
Isabel Lucas grew up attending drama school in Melbourne and Brisbane before signing with an agent and auditioning for Home and Away.
She initially wanted the role of Kit Hunter but in 2003 was asked to play a girl named Tasha Andrews instead after producers deemed it to be a more suitable fit.
Lucas’ portrayal as a confused young girl who only spoke Pig Latin made for an interesting storyline at the time.
After three years, Lucas relocated to Hollywood and focused on animal activism before a chance meeting with Steven Spielberg in 2007 landed her a role in the Hollywood film Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen.
Since then, she has starred in more than two dozen films and smaller TV roles.
She previously dated Entourage star Adrian Grenier but they split not long after she was involved in a car accident with her Transformers co-star, Shia LaBeouf.
Lucas, 36, is now based in Byron Bay and is vocal about her views on Covid-19 vaccinations and 5G conspiracy theories.
Tammin Sursok - Dani Sutherland
Tammin Sursok was cast in the role of rebellious teenager, Dani Sutherland, shortly after completing year 10.
In 2001, Sutherland was sexually assaulted and the confronting scene played out on-screen, which she Sursok previously admitted would not be appropriate by today’s standards.
The South African-born actor won a Logie award for her portrayal and held the role for four years before moving to the US to pursue a music career.
She signed with Sony BMG and released a solo album before retiring from music and returning to film and TV.
In 2007, Sursok landed a role on US soap The Young and the Restless followed by Disney’s Hannah Montana.
She was later cast in the hit TV show Pretty Little Liars, which marked one of the biggest roles in her career.
She’s married to US producer, Sean McEwen, and they share two children together.
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