Yahoo News Exclusive: Neighbours star Ben Hall warns of "dark" scenes ahead for Ned and Scarlett
Neighbours star Ben Hall has warned of "dark" scenes ahead for Ned Willis as newcomer Scarlett Brady continues to scheme.
Following a chance meeting at an airport bar earlier this month, Scarlett has come to Erinsborough harbouring a secret obsession with Ned.
Viewers have already seen Scarlett try to drive a wedge between Ned and his girlfriend Yashvi Rebecchi (Olivia Junkeer), but this is only the beginning of what she has in store.
Speaking exclusively to Digital Spy about what's to come, Ben explained: "I think this is the biggest storyline Ned has had since I was a guestie on the show a couple of years ago.
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"It lasts for about eight weeks. Even after that, it has quite a long-lasting effect on Ned because of all the stuff that takes place.
"I'm really excited and interested to see what people think. The character of Scarlett is really interesting. I think it'll be divisive for the audience."
He continued: "What I like about the character of Scarlett is that, as we find out more about her history, we discover that she has a traumatic past.
"Her family was killed in a car crash when she was younger. That's affected her entire life and all of her relationships afterwards.
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"She's got this stalker thing going on and she's a little bit obsessed with Ned. She's getting to know him and we see that play out. It gets darker and darker as it goes on."
Ben warned that it may take a while for Ned to realise that he has been targeted by a master manipulator.
He laughed: "It'll take a long time, probably! I think Ned wants to see the best in Scarlett. As it goes on, there is a bit of chemistry between them. She's beautiful and seems to really like him.
"They get on well, and if he wasn't with Yashvi, maybe there would be a potential relationship there. Scarlett is very clever and manipulative, but manages to keep it wrapped up very well.
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"The producers and the directors wanted the audience to be aware but Ned to stay in the dark – but at the same time, he can't look stupid. So she's got to be incredibly clever to get away with it all.
"Scarlett is clever enough that she even manages to convince Yashvi for a while. Naturally Yashvi sees this beautiful, blonde woman spending all of her time with her boyfriend and gets a little bit jealous, but it takes a while for her to see through the façade."
In real life, Ben was already friends with Christie Whelan Browne when she took on the role of Scarlett.
He told us: "There were a few different names in the frame for the role. Originally they were looking at an American actress. But I was really stoked when we found it was Christie. She'd just finished working on the Muriel's Wedding stage show with my partner Prue and we're all friends, so it made it really fun.
"It made some of the more intimate stuff later on a bit tricky – sometimes it's better if you don't know the person at all! But we had such a great laugh and she's a brilliant actress."
Neighbours airs weekdays at 1.45pm and 5.30pm on Channel 5 (UK) and 6.30pm on 10 Peach (Australia).
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