Ten has revealed the key cast of the brand new Australian drama series, Playing For Keeps.
Madeleine West, Cece Peters, Annie Maynard, Olympia Valance and Jeremy Lindsay Taylor are just some of the esteemed Australian actors who will star in this fresh, contemporary and glamorous take on the world of Aussie Rules football.
Playing For Keeps explores this unique realm from the perspective of the real power players: the women. From the grandstands and the locker rooms to the red carpets and the bedrooms, what makes the wives and girlfriends of football’s elite tick? Infatuation, love, power or relevance?
This bold, brassy and dangerous drama series depicts the lives of Aussie Rules football’s rich and famous – and proves that when the cream of the crop fly high, they sometimes feel the heat.Playing For Keeps will feature Madeleine West, the AFI Award winning actress and TV Week Logie Award nominated star of television hits such as Neighbours, The Wrong Girl, Satisfaction and Underbelly, as Kath, the elegant, astute and perfectly mannered coach’s wife, mentor and den mother.
The dynamic Cece Peters (The Wrong Girl, Catching Milat) will portray Paige, a down-to-earth high school teacher who moves to the city to follow her high school sweetheart. The talented Annie Maynard (Puberty Blues, Upper Middle Bogan) will play Maddy, a switched-on, self-assured lawyer and mother of two, who juggles an impressive schedule in an attempt to have it all.
Fast-rising local acting sensation and TV Week Logie Award nominee Olympia Valance (Neighbours) will star as Tahlia, a glamorous and ambitious social climber girlfriend of the club’s captain.
Other members of this superb ensemble cast include Jeremy Lindsay Taylor (Romper Stomper, Puberty Blues), Kevin Hofbauer (Sisters, Offspring, RUSH), George Pullar (Fighting Season, A Place To Call Home), Jackson Gallagher (Home and Away), James Mason (Neighbours) and Ethan Panizza (The Doctor Blake Mysteries).
Network Ten Head of Drama, Rick Maier, said: “This has been one of the most comprehensive casting calls we’ve done. The key roles dictate strong, independent, fascinating women. We think Nathan Lloyd and the team at Screentime have done a brilliant job securing a cast of this calibre.”
Screentime Executive Chairman, Bob Campbell, said: “Screentime is delighted to be collaborating with Network Ten on Playing For Keeps. We have assembled a great cast with a blend of experience and newbies to realise this fun, sexy and at times confronting fresh take on the real power behind the Aussie Rules throne: the wives and girlfriends.”
Playing For Keeps begins production next week and will air on Ten later this year.
