For someone who has just become Summer Bay’s youngest-ever killer, Sam Barrett is cheery.
The 21-year-old actress, who plays Chloe Anderson, claims she had more fun than she expected filming her first murder scene, in which she bashes her father Matthew (Total Control’s James Sweeny) over the head with a brick.
“It was actually a lot of fun to film,” she recalls, despite the fact that the scene is so dramatic. “It was fantastic.”
It wasn’t a planned assassination. After learning that she was conceived after he raped her mother, Mia, Chloe went to see Matthew to tell him she never wanted to see him again (Anna Samson).
When Matthew refused to go quietly, Mia defended her daughter, only to be attacked by Matthew. Chloe took up a brick and hit him over the head, desperate to defend her mother.
Barrett describes the unexpected aggression as “an innate thing all kind of birthed from that instant.”
“I believe the only thought that would cross her mind would be, ‘I need to protect Mum.’
Mia was frantically driving out of Summer Bay with Matthew’s body in the back of her car when Home And Away concluded in 2021. Unfortunately for Mia, Constable Cash Newman (Nicholas Cartwright) saw her uneasiness and pulled her over.
In a panic, she sped away, and the ensuing police chase is expected to kick off the new season this week.
The cops eventually catch up with her, and Cash quickly discovers the body in the back of the car, according to a recent promo.
Mia begs new boyfriend Ari Parata (New Zealander Rob Kipa-Williams) for assistance from the police station. Will Ari, a rehabilitated criminal who has served time in jail, be held responsible for Matthew’s death?
Barrett is staying quiet about what will happen next, but he promises it will be dramatic.
“Someone is probably going to have to take the fall for Chloe, and who that is and how that happens will have a lot of ramifications,” she adds.
“It’s a snowball effect,” says the narrator. From there, everything seem to spin out of control. I can’t say much about it since I don’t want to give too much away, but I believe it will be something Chloe will struggle with.”
Barrett, who was born in the United States, joined the series in early 2021 after applying for five different roles.
She admires the young woman she plays on TV, as well as the way she handles harsh events like murder.
“I believe Chloe is born with a lot of strength. “I have no idea what I would do in her situation in real life,” she admits, realising that her character is dealing with very real-world issues.
She claims that while she enjoyed the narrative, she never forgot that there were people watching Home And Away who were actually born as a result of rape.
“I believe that’s something we tried to address with compassion because it’s a very serious matter,” she says. “It could be triggering for certain people watching because it does happen in real life.”
“We wanted to be as delicate and considerate as possible since I believe it could be very near to home for certain people.”
Meanwhile, if murdering someone and having your mother imprisoned isn’t enough for a girl to manage, Chloe’s ex-boyfriend Ryder (Lukas Radovich) is also facing execution.
Theo (Matt Evans), Ryder and Leah’s (Ada Nicodemou) trouble-making nephew, is in dire straits after one of their internet pranks goes bad.
Ryder was supposed to spend five hours buried below, live streaming the torture to their thousands of fans, but Theo stumbled and fell into a ravine, knocking himself out, leaving Ryder stranded.
Will a traumatised and needy Chloe jump back into Alf Stewart’s (Ray Meagher) arms if his baby grandchild survives?
“I believe everything is conceivable,” Barrett adds, “but obviously I can’t give too much away.”
“In the future, there could be someone else on the cards for Chloe.” It’s never simple to fall in love, and it might be tricky. All you have to do now is wait and see.”
