WENTWORTH RETURNS!
AN OLD DOG MEETS A FIERCE NEW ONE IN SEASON 8 OF THE BRUTAL AUSTRALIAN PRISON DRAMA
There’s a fierce new top dog – with a striking new haircut – in Season 8 of Wentworth: Allie Novak. That timid girl in a teal tracksuit we first saw in Season 4 is gone forever – and that’s just fine for her portrayer, Kate Jenkinson. “We get to see the characters’ roller-coaster ride of personal growth on Wentworth,” Jenkinson, 38, tells WHO. “And the strong, bad--s version of Allie is definitely my favourite.”
Allie is doubtless a career-making role for Jenkinson, but the actress concedes there can be a downside. Sometimes it’s hard to leave Allie at Wentworth at the end of the day. “This particular world is so gruesome and dark and gory it really does seep into your bloodstream and affect you in ways you didn’t think it would,” she says. “When I’m playing Allie … when she is strong and in control and respected, you can’t help but let that add a bit of swagger to your own step.”
As fans remember, Allie proved her top dog credentials when she shot dead dodgy prison officer Sean Brody (Rick Donald) in the heart-stopping Season 7 finale. After seeing Allie at her lowest point in the series, she rose phoenix-like from the ashes of “death and destruction”. “She has been chosen by the women to be top dog and we get to see a side of Allie that we’ve not yet seen and that’s someone who is strong and capable and self-assured,” Jenkinson explains.
And as for that haircut … “That’s a classic break-up hairdo,” Jenkinson says with a laugh. “She’s broken up the old version of Allie and she needs a do-over.” Just as well there is a good supply of hair dye in the prison, right? But don’t think for a second, Allie is going to have things all her own way in the prison. Meet Lou Kelly (Kate Box), a terrifyingly violent (and that’s saying something for someone in Wentworth) former top dog who is thrown into lock-up with her partner Reb Keane (Zoe Terakes) after a botched heist.
“She does have a massive temper,” Box, 41, says of her character, Lou. “But she also has a macabre sense of humour. So, while she is quite a violent woman, she is able to find the joy and light in things others wouldn’t.” Sounds delightful.
It doesn’t take too long before the current and former top dogs come face to face in a cracking scene we don’t dare spoil for you. Safe to say these two are destined to be enemies. Before that, there’s an uncomfortable scene in which Lou terrorises another inmate, who winds up urinating in their pants. That gives you some indication of what Lou is capable of. “I did find that scene confronting,” Box says. “I did work out, after I’d wound down after the scene, that I had never played a character who was the one dishing out the violence.” Box, however, says she has loved her experience on Wentworth, even if her first introduction to the set was a little disorienting. “I walked into the wrong entrance of the building and found myself in the cells,” she laughs. That’s what they all say, right?
Wentworth starts Tue., Jul. 28 at 8.30pm; FOX Showcase or stream on Foxtel.