Matt Ryan (City Homicide)
| Matt Ryan | |
|---|---|
| City Homicide character | |
| First appearance | 28 August 2007 "In The Hands Of Giants Pt 1" |
| Last appearance | 30 March 2011 "Ghosts, Part VI" |
| Created by | John Hugginson John Banas |
| Portrayed by | Damien Richardson |
| Information | |
| Occupation | Police Detective |
| Title | Detective Sergeant |
| Family | Isabella Ryan (mother) Callum Ryan (father) |
| Significant other(s) | Emma Treadgold (2008–11) |
Matt Ryan is a fictional character from the Australian crime drama City Homicide, played by Damien Richardson. He made his debut screen appearance in the first series episode "In The Hands Of Giants Pt 1", which was broadcast on 28 August 2007.
Actor Damien Richardson originally played the minor role of a police officer in the unaired City Homicide pilot. But after he proved popular with the test audience, the producers asked him to attend a screen test for the main cast and he won the role of Matt. He told The Age's Bridget McManus, "When I auditioned for the role of Matt, I thought, 'Do I mention the pilot?' because it was a different director but obviously the same project. But they had noticed and a lot of the feedback that was pretty strong was about the other character I had played. That was the difficulty in finding where to pitch Matt Ryan." Richardson said that he received some pressure from the network to keep some elements of his character from the pilot. However, it did not work out as the writing was too different. Richardson admitted that he had not experienced a similar pace of work before, and it gave him a new appreciation for the television serial.
The character was created by the show's co-creators and writers John Hugginson and John Banas. A notable storyline for Matt saw him discover the truth about his mother's disappearance. During the second season, Matt took on a supporting role to the other character's personal problems.
In early 2011, Seven Network announced the series would be rested following the six-part mini-series City Homicide: No Greater Honour. Richardson believed that the show would not be coming back, saying "it is not like getting a band back together. It is a massive logistical exercise." Richardson also thought No Greater Honour returned to the popular style of the show's early series', which focused on the personal lives of the detectives.
Matt's Italian mother, Isabella, disappeared when he was young. Following her disappearance, Matt's father started drinking more often. For a long time, Matt's boss, Stanley Wolfe (Shane Bourne), was the only colleague who knew about Isabella. Matt becomes attracted to Jennifer Mapplethorpe (Nadine Garner) and they develop a close friendship.
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