She burst on to our screens in 2012 on The X Factor Australia, but powerhouse vocalist Samantha Jade is no one-trick pony. The beauty has dabbled in acting over the past few years and even earnt rave reviews for her portrayal of Kylie Minogue in mini-series INXS: Never Tear Us Apart. Now she’s popped up again on our favourite Aussie soap Home and Away, playing the cunning and manipulative Isla Schultz. We sit down with Samantha to get all the goss …
How does it feel to be part of such an iconic show?
I filmed it last year and it’s funny to be only talking about it now, but it was such a fun process. I got to play a character that is so different from the real me, so that was fun. I had a really great time and learnt a lot. Everyone works really fast on the show, which is great because they just throw you in and you’ve got to go with it.
Did you know any other cast members before you got the role?
No, not really. I’d met a couple of them before, but I hadn’t really hung out with anyone.
The cast must be a tight- knit community. How was it coming in?
I was very nervous about that actually because I was thinking it would be tight-knit and that I’d be the new kid on the block, but it actually went really well. They were very welcoming – a very kind cast and crew.
Was working on Home and Away something you’d always aspired to do?
It just popped up out of the blue and it was the character that I found really exciting. Not playing a singer or someone even remotely like myself seemed like a fun opportunity.
Did you have to do any kind of research to play Isla?
Not really, there wasn’t much research that I could do. I mostly just drew inspiration from my mum because I’m playing a mother and someone who is doing everything she can for her children. That’s what my mother would say to me – you do anything for your children. So that’s where I kind of drew all my inspiration from.
Did you have a big viewing party for your first episode on screen?
Yes, I had just my best friends over and we watched it.
How do you find watching yourself on screen?
Really weird, just because it was filmed so long ago. It’s a very bizarre experience!
Have you had to keep everything under wraps since you finished filming?
Yes. People did know that I was in it, but I didn’t obviously say too much about my storyline and stuff like that. I wasn’t allowed to.
Have you had a good response from your fans to your character?
It’s been great, actually. Which I was really nervous about also because you know when people play a role and then you think that’s how they are in real life. I was actually really nervous about that, but the response that I have received has been great so far.
So you don’t want anyone to think you’re a psycho in real life?
Exactly, yeah.
You came into the public realm as a singer, but is acting something that you’d like to continue doing moving forward?
Yeah, definitely. I love acting – it’s so fun and so different. It’s really creative in a totally different way than my singing, so yeah, I would love to.
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