Home and Away is known for its revolving door – while Summer Bay stalwarts like Alf Stewart, Irene Roberts and Marilyn Chambers have stuck around for decades, most of the other characters tend to leave after just a few years.
2023 has been no exception to the rule, as some familiar faces reached the end of the line. Additionally, some guest characters left once their storylines reached a natural conclusion.
Here, we look back at the most significant departures of the year so far and why each of the exits came about.
Kawakawa Fox-Reo (Nikau Parata)
The news that Kawakawa Fox-Reo would no longer be playing Nikau Parata was initially made public in November 2022. In March 2023, his last scenes were broadcast on Australian television.
Kawakawa had portrayed the part of Nikau for three years, which is typically the length of a younger cast member’s contract.
Kawakawa didn’t have an exit interview prior to leaving, although rumors claimed that he was prepared to take on other endeavors.
In recent months, Kawakawa has traveled extensively, including a trip to the UK.
Courtney Miller (Bella Nixon)
Bella Nixon was played by Courtney Miller until she left the role in 2022, however this year she returned as a guest cast member to take part in Nikau’s farewell plot.
After their tragic breakup, Bella and Nikau had unfinished business, so Courtney returned for a few episodes to wrap things up and give the young pair their happy ending. This indicated that Bella’s comeback in 2023 was always intended to be fleeting.
Courtney stated on the Stuff website in New Zealand that she made the decision to leave in 2022. I had undoubtedly completed my acting contract. In reality, I continued working for a further three months. I did it joyfully but not without shed a lot of tears.
She said, “I genuinely believed that when I left, I was saying goodbye. My tale had continued without me, so it seemed strange when I returned. She was mentioned. Despite the fact that I, Courtney, didn’t, she did continue to exist in that universe.
Sophie Dillman (Ziggy Astoni)
This year marked the end of an era for Summer Bay as the last living Astoni family member announced his retirement. Ziggy has been portrayed by Sophie Dillman since 2017.
The actor who portrayed Ziggy’s on-screen boyfriend Dean, Patrick O’Connor, and Sophie both left at the same time.
We both did everything we could with our characters, so it was time to begin a new chapter, she told Australia’s TV Week magazine.
“It’s bittersweet and emotional, but we realise how lucky we are to have had such an incredible run.”
Patrick O’Connor (Dean Thompson)
Patrick’s persona After learning that his little son Jai would be relocating to Far North Queensland, Dean made the decision to leave the Bay with Ziggy. Dean was happy when Ziggy recommended they move yourself so they could be closer to him because he didn’t want to be so far away from his oldest child.
Patrick opened up about abandoning the character of Dean after five years in real life.
It’s a major commitment and a significant portion of my life, he told TV Week. During the time we were there, I felt like I transformed into six different people.
Both as an actor and a person, I’ve grown a lot. Although it’s a fantastic place to work, I was prepared to go on.
Jordi Webber (Kahu Parata)
This year, Jordi Webber brought some color to the Parata residence when his persona Kahu stopped over and threw his cousin Tane for a loop. Later on, viewers found out that Kahu would not be remaining, as he had to return to New Zealand to face the music following Tane’s revelation of his secrets.
For this particular plot, which ran for about a month, Jordi was added as a guest cast member. “[The producers] wanted Kahu to be super free, super surfy, and Māori, and, at the time, I was travelling the east coast of Australia, living in a van,” he said, reflecting on the character, to Stuff.
“I was just the right guy for them—I had the right amount of enthusiasm. It’s how I got to be there.” “It felt like the part was made for me, waiting for me to step in and fit in,” he continued. All I had to do was amp up the charm and cheekiness. Like most individuals from back home, I have a large family of cousins named Kahu.
It was quite simple to kind of harness that, and I added a little bit of my own unrestricted, lighthearted joy as well.”
Joshua Hewson (Andrew Lawrence)
Joshua Hewson’s character Andrew Lawrence is still currently on air in the UK, but his final scenes screened in Australia in July.
Andrew had an eventful time in the Bay thanks to the terrifying actions of the Vita Nova cult, but it was always the plan for him to leave once the storyline was over.
Discussing his future plans, Joshua told Perth Now: “It would be my dream to go to Hollywood. I am trying to hit that as soon as possible.
“That’s always been my No.1. Hit America straight away and the Hollywood movies.”
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