As one of Australia’s biggest soap stars, he’s dominated the airwaves, starring in some of the country’s most popular programmes.
After five years as the good guy Matt Knight on the Australian soap Doctor Doctor, actor Ryan Johnson is relishing his new bad boy role as PK in Home and Away.
He and his wife Tamara Asmar, who has her own celebrity, are currently raising their eight-year-old daughter Alia.
Let’s take a look at the Home and Away star’s life, from his hidden soap role to embracing his role as a villain, as he continues to dominate the airways.
Formerly in a soap opera
Fans may recall Ryan from a previous appearance on the serial, when he played Paulie Rosetta, Angelo Rosetta’s brother, on the television soap opera in 2010.
In April 2022, he returned to the show as Peter “PK” King, a wealthy gambler and villain.
Paulie’s character was described as a starry-eyed dreamer who had to rely on his brother to get him out of trouble.
Fans may recall Paulie starting a fire at his parents’ restaurant, for which Angelo took responsibility and was fired from the family business.
Ryan also starred as Matt Knight on the Australian medical drama Doctor Doctor for five years, for which he was nominated for a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2017.
City Loop, The Wannabes, and Guardians of the Tomb are among his other TV credits.
Role of a Villain
When he called his character PK in Home and Away a “bit of a sociopath,” the actor seemed to relish his nasty role.
About his bad boy part, he told Stuff: “He sees an opportunity to come in and create havoc, and he gets a kick out of it.
He treats these individuals like toys, and I believe he basically goes from place to place screwing people off.”
Johnson also addressed fan speculation that his character is an undercover cop tasked with busting illegal gambling operations.
“I’m enjoying the conjecture,” he remarked, “but I can’t confirm or deny that.”
“I think he’s a sociopath!” says the narrator.
A well-known wife
Actor Ryan may steal the show on the big screen, but he shares the spotlight with his famous wife, Tamara Asmar.
Tamara is a dramatist who worked as a scriptwriter for Ryan’s current show, Doctor Doctor, when the two met.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Ryan said: “We met in my acting agent’s building in Surry Hills, Sydney, in 2001.
“Tamara worked in the office downstairs and was a hottie. I’d go down to say hello, tell jokes, and see if I could make her feel better.
“With her jet-black hair and large blue eyes, I thought she was stunning.
“I hadn’t seen Tamara in a few years when I went out drinking with a friend at a pub and there she was.
“I was completely smitten.”
Ryan also talked about the difficulties he and his co-stars had when they had to execute kissing scenes.
“Seeing me in kissing sequences in the early days was a little unsettling for Tamara,” he remarked.
She said all I had to do was tell her how bad it was, how technical and uninteresting it was, and how much I disliked it.”
Alia, their eight-year-old daughter, is the couple’s only child.
