Home and Away's Matt Evans breaks silence on mass exodus: 'Really sad'

Home and Away has been hit by a string of departures, with popular stars Sophie Dillman (Ziggy Astoni), Patrick O’Connor (Dean Thompson), Kawakawa Fox-Reo (Nikau Parata) and Courtney Miller (Bella Nixon) for the second time, all saying farewell this year. While long-term cast members Ray Meagher (Alf Stewart), Lynne McGranger (Irene Roberts), Ada Nicodemou (Leah Patterson), Emily Symons (Marilyn Chambers) and Georgie Parker (Roo Stewart) are unlikely to exit any time soon, the younger actors often come and go quite quickly.

The soap often contracts new characters for around three years, with the actors and writers then deciding how much longer to extend their stay in Summer Bay. However, it does seem that over the past two years, the show has seen some high-profile losses, with Sam Frost (Jasmine Delaney), Lukas Radovich (Ryder Jackson), Rob Kipa-Williams (Ari Parata) and Harley Bonner (Logan Bennett) all leaving last year.

Logie-nominee Matt Evans, who plays Theo Poulos on the soap, tells Yahoo Lifestyle that it is emotional when a cast member departs, and likens the experience to “high school”.

“There’s so many people who would come and go on the show, so it’s kind of like high school,” he reveals. “If I was to finish [on the show], it would be like when you finish high school and you’ve got to say goodbye to everyone.”

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He spills that the cast and crew have a small get-together to farewell anybody finishing up, where people are able to give a small speech to celebrate their time on the show.

“That part is really sad, but then also, when someone new comes it’s really exciting,” he admits. “It’s an emotional rollercoaster, with people coming and going, and [you’ve] just gotta keep…navigating your relationships around that.”

As for how long Matt plans to stay in Summer Bay, the star keeps his cards close to his chest. He made his first appearance in September 2021, and has quickly integrated himself into key storylines on the show.

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“Tough question. I’ve still got a while [on the show]. I’ve got a while in me for sure. And as long as…I can be able to navigate this show and putting music out then I’m happy,” he says, referring to his independent music career.

“So there’s no definite, definitive answer on that. I’m just kind of playing it by ear…I’m enjoying it,” he adds.

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