Neighbours 35th anniversary: Rob Mills promises "gritty" late-night episodes as Finn takes revenge
The soap airs in a 10pm slot as part of the big week
Neighbours goes late-night as part of its 35th anniversary week with five extra episodes showing in a post-watershed 10pm slot. Rob Mills, aka Finn Kelly, is at the heart of the action set on a remote island resort, dubbed Neighbours: Endgame, and promises it will feel significantly different and grittier than regular trips to Ramsay Street.
"You'll definitely see a grittier version of Neighbours," he teases, speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com. "We have a different rating as we're on later which is great because you can show a bit more skin. There could be some revealing things involving myself - all will be revealed, let's leave it at that!
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"We're entirely on location and it's shot guerrilla-style which I loved. The director told me I'd be running back and forth every which way across this island for days. It kept me fit, it was like Finn boot camp! I shot 150 scenes in four weeks which is around three times more than normal.
"It's a great honour they basically make it The Finn Show for a week, and I didn't want to disappoint them."
Fans have followed amnesiac Finn's return to the dark side as his memories slowly return, and he goes full circle back to being the fiendish villain he was introduced as in 2017.
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The Endgame strand centres on a glamorous group of Erinsborough locals who decamp to Pierce Greyson's idyllic resort to celebrate Elly Conway's 35th birthday. Finn's obsession with his ex and her baby daughter reaches fever pitch, setting off a chain of events that puts everyone in danger - but nobody realises it…
"By the time he leaves for the island at the start of the week, Finn has decided what he must do, but he's hiding it from everyone else," confides Mills. "We're back to the original Finn, the master manipulator, most definitely. In the weeks leading up to this he's quite vulnerable as his amnesia fades and he recalls his painful past.
"No one is going to stand in his way, and if they do he'll just have to eliminate them."
In contrast to the island-set after-dark outings, back at Lassiters during the regular daytime show the mood is much lighter. The hotel hosts a wedding expo that sees five much-loved couples from different eras of the soap tie the knot, after their first trips up the aisle were curtailed for various reasons.
Three deaths have been confirmed as part of the explosive plot, but Mills warns against assuming the fatalities will all be connected to the more dramatic Endgame strand. "I wouldn't say all the deaths necessarily happen on the island. That's a little tease for you! But everyone there is certainly in danger.
"There is a particular showdown with Gary Canning, Bea Nilsson and Harlow Robinson who all end up in the way of Finn getting what he wants. Basically if you are on that island with Finn - watch out!"
Ultimately Finn is driven by his toxic connection to Elly, and Kelly says the complex relationship will reach a climax after years of emotion, deceit and coercion. Does this play into Jodi Anasta's upcoming exit from the cast? Could she be among the trio of permanent departures?
"I'd say things between Finn and Elly definitely resolve, but probably not in the way either of them wanted it to. Make of that what you will!"
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