EXCLUSIVE
Home and Away heartthrob Nicholas Cartwright has hit out at the show’s former boss, accusing him of being a “jerk” after he sent “rude” messages about a crude new storyline involving his character.
Dan Bennett, who ran the Seven series as a scripted executive for the network between 2016 and 2017, says he unexpectedly drew the ire of the Summer Bay star on Friday after responding to one of her social media posts.
“I’d seen him promoting an upcoming story (Home and Away) about the return of the River Boys,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
‘The show is trying to re-energize the whole crime vibe – the drugs and the evil – and all I’ve done is text him saying ‘zzz’, as in ‘that’s a bit boring, we’ve seen it all before’.
‘Of course, that’s just my opinion; I’m just a fan these days. But the next thing I knew, Nicholas Cartwright, one of the supposed stars of the show, was DMing me and calling me a ‘wanker.’
“I don’t know Nicholas, I’ve never met him… so to think that this is how he speaks to fans is deeply troubling.”
Summer Bay stud Nicholas Cartwright has become embroiled in a heated row with the show’s former boss.
Cartwright with actress Zara Zoe, her real-life sister
In excerpts of the heated exchange seen by Daily Mail Australia, Bennett ignites the feud with a series of “zzz” messages.
Cartwright, who plays Summer Bay’s resident cop Cash Newman, responds by saying: “Rude response from someone in the industry.”
Bennett then fires back, responding, “Or maybe an informed response from someone who knows that show better than anyone on the planet and is heartbroken to see it revert to River Boy nonsense.”
‘The idea that we should support productions simply because we are in the ‘industry’ rather than supporting them because the quality is A+ is nonsense.
‘How can anyone be fair in applauding mediocrity instead of excellence?’
Cartwright responds: “Okay, buddy, try not to act like a fool next time.”
Bennett said he had since raised the issue with Cartwright’s bosses at Home and Away and considered the matter closed.
“I don’t want to ruin anyone’s career or cause them any problems, but I sent a message to their superiors and they told me it had been sorted out and I’m happy with that,” he said.
“He was probably having a bad day and was upset about something else. But it wasn’t a pleasant experience and I’d hate to think he would send a message like that to anyone else.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Seven for comment.
The unseemly row comes amid ongoing unrest among some members of the Home and Away cast over the direction of the show’s storylines, with some of the soap’s biggest stars openly criticising the decision to move away from its original “family values” premise.
An excerpt from the Instagram conversation
Home and Away legend Ray Meagher, who holds the Guinness World Record for longest-serving actor in an Australian soap for his portrayal of Alf Stewart, criticised the inclusion of the River Boys as early as 2018.
In a television special filmed to celebrate the show’s 30th anniversary, Meagher said he thought darker storylines involving sex, drugs and guns were a mistake.
“I thought there was a period of about three years where I just thought the show had strayed from its basic paths for a while,” Meagher told ‘Endless Summer’ host Steve Pennells.
“I think when three characters have 80 percent of the story and there are 21 to 23 regular characters, plus another 4 or 5 guest stars, and they’re fighting over maybe 20 percent of the screen time, the show is a little bit out of place.
Some of Summer Bay’s biggest stars are worried about the return of the River Boys
“Sex, drugs and rock and roll were not the core mission of Home and Away, so giving the show that much weight was, in my opinion, a bit of a mistake.”
‘In every city there’s someone that people say, “Oh God, not him again” or whatever, or “What’s he up to now?” that kind of thing, there’s always going to be a little bit of evil, but you can’t have guns to heads, bank robberies, drug dealing as you know, the foundation of a program like this.’
Former Home and Away executive Dan Bennett wants the show to return to its core values
Bennett, who also held senior roles at Neighbours and Winners & Losers, said that during his tenure he wanted to return Home and Away to its core values.
“When I was on the show, I was proud of its history and tradition,” he said.
‘These were foster children and the older people in the program who helped the younger ones overcome problems and reach great heights.
“I made a conscious decision to bring back those traditional values. I put Kate Ritchie back in the big house and gave her foster children because that’s what Home and Away was all about.
‘Kate resisted for a long time, saying, ‘Please don’t make me the new Pippa. ‘ But she was there so long that it was natural for her to become the new face of the show.
‘That’s what I always felt was the heart of Home and Away.
“The current writers of the show have made a clear decision to move away from that and go in a different direction. And, well, they’re getting really good ratings, so what do I know?”