The last time Rhiannon Fish worked with Dan Ewing, the pair were the talk of Summer Bay.
As April Scott and Heath Braxton, they set the gossips buzzing. She was an innocent young girl, he was a tattooed River Boy, and their fling was scandalous.
That was back in 2011. Rhiannon left Home And Away two years later, with her sights set on a career in the US. Now she and Dan are back together in the Australian-made sci-fi action movie Occupation.
This time, they have a lot more on their minds than what Alf might think. They’ve got to save the world from an alien invasion!
Rhiannon and Dan read lines with Lincoln Younes (far left) during their Home and Away days.
In Occupation, Rhiannon plays a nurse called Vanessa. She’s one of a group of ordinary people who realise the future of the world is under threat when aliens attack. As for Dan, he plays a football player called Matt who takes on the role of group leader.
“They’re just ordinary people and that’s what makes this film so great,” Rhiannon, 27, tells TV WEEK. “We’ve all seen the films where it’s superheroes fighting to save the world, but it’s cool to see what a group of normal, everyday Australians would do.
“What you or I would do if aliens actually invaded? It’s great to see to see someone like us fighting for survival.”
Dan’s character Matt gets a handle on futuristic weapons.
The adrenaline-charged Occupation is not Rhiannon’s first step into the world of sci-fi. In 2016, she played warrior Ontari in the post-apocalyptic US drama series The 100, alongside Eliza Taylor and Bob Morley.
It’s a genre Rhiannon loves.
“We’re living in a world of science fiction right now in TV and film and it’s an exciting world to play in because anything is possible,” she says.
“I think that makes it really cool for audiences and it plays with your imagination. It’s just a special genre and I very much enjoy it and hope to continue in that in the future.”
Terror descends from the sky on the small Aussie town.
Rhiannon jumped at the chance to reunite with her former co-star Dan, now 33, in Occupation.
“It was very cool to spend more time with Dan now and see who he has evolved into, not only as an actor, but as a person,” she says.
“We really were just kids on Home And Away, so to see who he is now really is a pleasure. I adore him.”
And the feeling, it seems, is mutual. Rhiannon admits that Dan was her “meal ticket” for the movie.
“He had worked with the producer of Occupation before on one of their other films,” she explains. “When the character of Vanessa popped up he said, ‘You’ve got to take a look at Rhiannon Fish.’ So I was very fortunate that he sent them in my direction.”
Matt rescues his girlfriend’s mother (Lai Peng Chan).
Rhiannon says she doesn’t have a bad word to say about any of Summer Bay’s River Boys.
“They’re certainly easy on the eyes and they’re really lovely people!”
And, just maybe, Rhiannon hints, she and Dan might work together again. Before Occupation even premiered, a sequel had already been given the green light.
“Whether I survive the first one is still up for debate,” she says. “There are some characters who don’t make it through. You’ll have to watch the film to find out!”
Occupation is in cinemas now.
