Rachel Griffiths, the Six Feet Under and Muriel’s Wedding star, has joined the cast of upcoming Australian drama series Wentworth: Halfway Home.
Also joining the ensemble cast of Binge‘s Wentworth spin-off is Sophie Lowe (Beautiful Kate, Blow the Man Down). They join returning Wentworth stars Katrina Milosevic, Nicole da Silva and Kate Box, who play Susan ‘Boomer’ Jenkins, Franky Doyle and Lou Kelly, respectively.
Griffiths will play Moira, a glamorous new resident at Sal’s Halfway House. Per the synopisis, “Convicted of fraud and paroled after serving three years of a five-year sentence, Moira traded a career in beauty therapy for a whirlwind second marriage into high society, living a life of penthouses and champagne before her husband’s death exposed their fortune as an elaborate house of cards. Blackmailer, loan shark, seductress, the residents of Sal’s Halfway House have no idea what they are in for.”
“Moira is a delicious character to bring to life and is going shake things up at the house,” said Griffiths. “I am so excited to be working with such an amazing group of actors and creatives and being part of the iconic Wentworth world is going to be a lot of fun.”
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Lowe will play Sam, a people-pleasing former stalker, now on parole after obsession over a broken relationship led to a break-in and assault. She and rest of the new cast will join the previously announced Alex King, who plays Dee, and Chenile Chandler, who plays Lily.
Production on Wentworth: Halfway Home is currently underway in Melbourne, and you can see first-look images above and below. The story follows Boomer, who arrives at Sal’s Halfway House freshly paroled and determined to get custody of her daughter. However, when body turns up, seeding distrust among the residents.
Daniel Monaghan, Foxtel Group Executive Director, Entertainment Content, said: “Rachel Griffiths joining the cast of Wentworth: Halfway Home is a huge coup for the series. She brings extraordinary depth and screen presence to every role she takes on, and Moira is going to be a character audiences love to hate. This new chapter honours everything that made Wentworth such a phenomenon while pushing the world in bold new directions, and we can’t wait for audiences to meet the new faces alongside the fan-favourites they’ve followed for years.”
The original Wentworth played on Binge parent Foxtel and premiered back in 2013. A reimagining of the seminal prison series Prisoner, distributor Fremantle sold it more than 170 territories across eight seasons.
Wentworth: Halfway Home debutes on Binge and DAZN-owned Foxtel later this year. Fremantle Australia is producing, with major production investment from Foxtel and Screen Australia. The show was financed in association with VicScreen, with Fremantle handling international sales.
Carly Heaton and Brett Popplewell are the executive producers, Jess Paine is co-executive producer and Dean O’Toole is the producer. Monaghan is Executive Director of Content for Foxtel, with Lana Greenhalgh and Joshua Longhurst the EPs for the Australian pay-TV giant. Gracie Otto, whose sister Mirando Otto has just been announced as star of Binge comedy Tough Love, is the set-up director.
The stars of ‘Wentworth: Halfway Home’. Image credit: Binge
