Neighbours star Takaya Jonda has opened up about returning to the Australian soap as David Tanka.
It was confirmed earlier this month that the fan favourite character will be making a huge comeback with his husband Aaron Brennan, played by actor Matt Wilson. The pair are the latest stars to head back to Erinsbrough but it wasn't an any decision to make as the whole cast were left in tears following the news that the soap had been axed last year.
Explaining about the impact the ending of Neighbours had on him, Takaya told Daily Star and other press: "It was psychologically intense because we had to grieve the show and grieve our characters and the fact we wouldn't have the opportunity to play them again so it is a big deal for us to be given the opportunity to do that again and then have the possibility of that being taken away and having to go through that whole process again, it affects you more than what we thought.
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"Leading up to the end of the show last year the aftermath was much more effecting than we understood so whilst it seems obvious to say 'yes' when they want you back but there is a hesitation in your body because you just went through something which was incredibly fatiguing and incredibly effecting so there's more to it than just 'Do you want to be on TV again?'
"We saw every single person in the building cry so we had no incline the show would be coming back, especially so soon. We didn't think it was a real thing. We were quite blindsided but it and that's understandable from the production side of things because there was no real need for us to know but it was this huge shock to us and the conversation was a kind of a PTSD response because we'd just gone through this huge thing, all post Covid as well, so I don't think anyone saw it coming back that quickly. "It's phenomenal but prior to it the industry was going to suffer without having Neighbours in it. All the starts people get on this show is so important to the industry."
Opening up about why he and Matt decided to return to the soap together, Takaya told Daily Star and other press: "We were pitched the storylines beyond the flashback week and it gave us a really fun thing to come back and play with. We needed some good incentive to come back and we didn't want to come back and have characters in the background and this story really kicks if off with a bang."
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Matt agreed: "Jason Herbison has got such an incredible mind for story and he pitched us this storyline and we were really excited about that. We wanted to do our characters justice. We broke up with the show, we said goodbye and we mourned the loss of the show so that was such a big process so to get back on that was a big deal for all of us. We all had our individual situations so we had to consider it but ultimately we're back."
Neighbours releases new episodes from Mondays to Thursdays for free on Amazon Freevee
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