Fans of Home and Away’s Matt Evans like what they see, despite the fact that he is a rookie to acting.
The actor from Perth, who made his first appearance as Theo Poulos on the long-running Seven show in September, was recently nominated for the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Popular New Talent at the Logies, where the nominees and winner are decided by the audience.
“I had no idea that (Logies) were being revealed that day, so it caught me completely off guard,” Evans told AAA.
Simon Baker in 1993, Lisa McCune in 1995, and most recently Dylan Alcott in 2019 have all received the Most Popular New Talent award, which has recognised some of television’s biggest names.
In 2020, the 25-year-old WAAPA graduate was first presented to Australian audiences as a candidate on The Voice, and he said the praise for his performance made all the hard work of his new career worthwhile.
“When I first started (Home and Away), I was completely overwhelmed by the work because I had to put in so much effort to do everything, and now it’s a lot less of a strain because I can kind of balance everything else,” he explained.
“It’s the most rewarding job I’ve ever had.”
The Logies will return to Queensland on July 19 after a two-year break. Only Gold Logie nominees are allowed to invite a guest, much to Evans’ mother’s dismay.
“The first thing my mother asked me was, ‘Are you coming with me?’
“I’m sorry, mama,” he apologised.
He will not, however, be “flying solo.” Evans and his fellow cast members intend to make a night out of it.
He is up against Alessandra Rampolla, Carlos Sanson Jr, Melanie Bracewell, Tony Armstrong, and Will Lodder in addition to Evans’ nomination.
Five more nominations were received for Home and Away.
Ray Meagher, who plays Alf Stewart, has been nominated for the prestigious Gold Logie Award for Most Popular Australian Television Personality.
Ada Nicodemou (Leah Patterson) and Sophie Dillman (Ziggy Astoni) are up for the Most Popular Actress Silver Logie, while Ada Nicodemou (Leah Patterson) and Sophie Dillman (Ziggy Astoni) are vying for the Most Popular Actress Silver Logie.
On 7 and 7Plus, Home and Away airs Monday through Thursday at 7 p.m.