Having joined the cast of Wentworth in season six, Susie Porter knows all too well just how popular the series was and still is.
So following the announcement that Wentworth will be returning for a highly anticipated new chapter, we simply had to ask the star for her thoughts.
Sitting down with TV WEEK to discuss Season 2 of Disney’s The Artful Dodger, in which she returns as Lady Jane Fox, Susie told us that while the death of her character Marie Winter sadly means she won’t be returning for the Wentworth spin-off, she wasn’t surprised to hear the news.
“There is a new series that’s happening, which is outside of the prison in Wentworth,” she confirmed.
“My character was unfortunately stabbed in the garbage room, so I won’t be coming back. That happened, you know, five years ago.
“But I had heard whispers about the kind of step-down prison show. And so it didn’t really surprise me when they sort of launched that idea at the AACTAs on Friday night.”
Though she may not be rising from the dead to step back into Marie Winter’s shoes, Susie, 55, is interested to see the final result, knowing just how crazy fans are likely to go for it.
“It has such a massive fan base and people go crazy for it online,” she says.
“So I think that there will be a great built-in audience. It’ll just be interesting how they make that work.”
Who did Susie Porter play in Wentworth?
Susie joined the cast of Australia’s longest-running one-hour cable drama in 2017, alongside fellow Wentworth newcomers Leah Purcell and Rarriwuy Hick.
The series, which ran from 2013-2021, was a contemporary reimagining of Prisoner
As infamous brother owner Marie Winter – originally portrayed by Maggie Millar in Prisoner – Susie was a force to be reckoned with. And she quickly became a fan favourite.
Though her sights were firmly set on getting revenge against Ruby Mitchell (Rarriwuy Hick) for her son’s death, she eventually reconciled with her archenemy.
In fact, she protected Ruby from being attacked by Lou Kelly’s (Kate Box) lackies, taking a shiv to the chest in her place.
The penultimate episode of Season 8: Part One was her last, and she died a hero.
When is Wentworth returning?
It was announced during the AACTA Awards on February 6 that Wentworth would be back for a new chapter. Better still, it was revealed that “much-loved characters are returning to the show”.
Former castmate Danielle Cormack, who played legendary Top Dog Bea Smith, made the announcement during a celebration of the show’s enduring legacy. Sadly, her character also died in similar fashion and therefore won’t be returning.
Speculation is already rife as to who from the original cast will be returning. This time, the action moves from the women’s prison to the life “beyond the prison walls”, as some of our favourite former prisoners navigate “life on parole”.
The new series is currently in development, with no premiere date set as of yet.
You can catch all the drama exclusively on Binge and Foxtel when it does return.
