Sam Frost could be returning to Home and Away just weeks after announcing her departure amid an ongoing COVID vaccine saga.
Long-running Summer Bay veteran Lynne McGranger revealed on Monday that Sam has since been double-vaccinated, and would be allowed back on set.
Sam made headlines in December when she parted ways with the soap after Channel 7 made the COVID vaccination mandatory for all cast and crew.
Lynne said “the door is definitely open” for Sam to return to Home and Away.
(Image: Instagram)Speaking to Nova’s Fitzy and Wippa this morning, Lynne revealed there is potential for the former Bachelorette to make a Home and Away comeback.
“She spoke to me, can I just say the door is not closed, it’s very much an open door. Sam needed to be with her family and they are down in Melbourne,” Lynne said.
“There was some issues of course with getting vaccinated but I’m here to tell you she is double vaccinated now, possibly boosted as well. She needed to be with her family, but the door is definitely open for her to come back.
“The way that she is currently gone from the bay, there is plenty of room for her to come back and I’m sure, that as we speak, she is in negotiations with the producers.”
Sam made headlines in December when she parted ways with the soap after Channel 7 made the COVID vaccination mandatory for all cast and crew.
(Image: Instagram)When asked if Sam left the show for reasons other than the vaccine mandate, Lynne revealed the 32-year-old wanted to move from Sydney to Melbourne to be closer to her family.
“She missed her family, I can’t speak for Sam but she really missed her family down in Melbourne and that’s where she need to be,” Lynne said.
“She’s never made a secret of the fact that she does struggle with her anxiety, that is out there and is a great thing to make public, but she needed to be with her family and the producers being clever and smart and certainly compassionate, said ‘You go and do what you need to do Sam, the door is open for you to come back and we’d love you to come back’.”
Back in October, Sam made a video confessing she had “good reasons” not to get the COVID vaccine but chose to keep them private, then called for “empathy” for people who choose to remain unvaccinated, and said her anxiety had worsened.
“I feel like it’s getting to a point now in the world where there’s a lot of segregation, a lot of harsh judgment, and it’s taking its toll on my mental health,” she said in the since-deleted Instagram clip.
A month later, Channel Seven made COVID vaccinations mandatory, and Sam revealed her character Jasmine Delaney would be “temporarily” written off for a few weeks.
“I will be written off temporarily, Jazzy is going on an off-screen adventure for a few weeks… but I’ll be back,” she explained at the time.
“My bosses are amazing, we’ve been in open communication for months. Very grateful we were able to make a plan that works for everyone.”
When asked if Sam left the show for reasons other than the vaccine mandate, Lynne revealed the 32-year-old wanted to move from Sydney to Melbourne to be closer to her family.
(Image: Instagram)Sam then revealed she had a medical procedure booked for January but would be fully vaccinated by February.
“I’m not leaving Home & Away. I’ve got a medical procedure booked in for January. So I won’t be fully vaxxed until mid-late February,” she wrote in November.
“I will be written out temporarily, Jazzy is going on an off-screen adventure for a few weeks… but I’ll be back.”
On December 17, Sam filmed her last scenes on the Home and Away set at Sydney’s Eveleigh Studios and announced she would be leaving the soap for good.
Sam revealed in a video back in October that she wouldn’t be getting vaccinated.
(Image: Instagram)In a statement to TV WEEK, Channel Seven said in December: “We support and respect Sam’s decision to leave Home and Away. Sam leaves with our sincere thanks and very best wishes for the future.”
The network said Sam’s departure is “not related to Seven Productions vaccination policy.”
“Sam’s previous social media post noted that she intends to be vaccinated following a medical procedure in January 2022. This timeline was mutually agreed to and accommodated by Home and Away‘s production schedule,” a spokesperson told TV WEEK.
Now To Love has reached out to Channel Seven for comment on Sam’s possible return.
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