The eighth season of Australian television drama series '' Wentworth'', premiered on

Fox Showcase Showcase (formerly Fox Showcase) is an Australian premium drama cable and satellite television channel. It was initially part of the Showtime Australia channels and was managed by PMP chief executive officer Peter Rose. In 2007 Rose said ''Sho ...

on 28 July 2020. The twenty-episode final season has been divided into two parts; the first, titled ''Wentworth: Redemption'', contains the first ten episodes (2020), while the second, titled ''Wentworth: The Final Sentence'', includes the remaining ten episodes and commenced broadcast on 24 August 2021. The story picks up sometime following the siege at the end of the previous season where the prisoners and staff struggle to rebuild their lives as they struggle to cope in the aftermath. In season 8 Joan Ferguson returns, and it is explained how she escaped death after being buried alive by Will Jackson. This season introduced four new main characters: Ann Reynolds ( Jane Hall), Lou Kelly (

Kate Box Kate Box (born 28 October 1979) is an Australian stage, film, and television actress. She is known for her roles as Nicole Vargas in ''Rake,'' Lou Kelly in '' Wentworth'', and as Dulcie Collins in '' Deadloch''. Early life and education Kate ...

), Judy Bryant (Vivienne Awosoga), Reb Keane (

Zoe Terakes Zoe Terakes () is an Australian actor. They are known for playing Reb Keane in the series '' Wentworth'' (2020–2021) and Hayley in the horror film '' Talk to Me'' (2022). Early life and education Terakes attended SCEGGS Darlinghurst for h ...

), and special guest stars

Marta Dusseldorp Marta Dusseldorp is an Australian stage, film and theatre actress. Her television credits include ''BlackJack'', ''Crownies'' (and its spin-off '' Janet King''), ''Jack Irish'' and '' A Place to Call Home''. She is also a producer, as co-found ...

as Sheila Bausch and

Tina Bursill Tina Bursill (born 24 July 1951) is an Australian actress. She played Louise Carter on the television series '' Skyways'' (1979–1981) and Sonia Stevens on ''Prisoner'' (1983–1984). She played Meryl Knight in the Nine Network drama series ' ...

as Eve Wilder.

Cast

Main

Leah Purcell Leah Maree Purcell (born 14 August 1970) is an Aboriginal Australian stage and film actress, playwright, film director, and novelist. She made her film debut in 1999, appearing in Paul Fenech's ''Somewhere in the Darkness'', which led to rol ...

as Rita Connors *

Kate Jenkinson Kate Ellen Jenkinson (born 24 August 1981) is an Australian actress, known for her various roles on '' The Wedge'', as well as her role of Kendall Quinn on '' Super Fun Night''. She is known for her role as Allie Novak in the Australian TV ser ...

Allie Novak Allie Novak is a fictional character from the Australian drama series '' Wentworth'', played by Kate Jenkinson. She made her first appearance during the fourth season episode titled, "First Blood", broadcast on 10 May 2016. The character was i ...

* Katrina Milosevic as Susan "Boomer" Jenkins * Robbie J Magasiva as Governor Will Jackson *

Bernard Curry Bernard Curry (born 27 March 1974) is an Australian actor, best known for his role as Jake Stewart in '' Wentworth'', Luke Handley in ''Neighbours'' and Hugo Austin in ''Home and Away''. Early life Alongside his actor brothers Stephen and And ...

as Jake Stewart *

Rarriwuy Hick Rarriwuy Hick (born ) is an Aboriginal Australian award-winning actress, known for her roles in the television series ''Redfern Now'', '' Cleverman'', '' Wentworth'' and '' True Colours''. Early life and education Hick was born around 1991 i ...

as Ruby Mitchell *

Susie Porter Susie Porter (born 1970 or 1971) is an Australian television, film and theatre actress. She made her debut in the 1996 film '' Idiot Box'', before rising to prominence in films including '' Paradise Road'' (1997), '' Welcome to Woop Woop'' (1997 ...

as Marie Winter *

as Lou Kelly * Jane Hall as Ann Reynolds *

as Reb Keane * Vivienne Awosoga as Judy Bryant * Kate Atkinson as Vera Bennett *

Pamela Rabe Pamela Rabe (born Pamela June Koropatnick; 30 April 1959) is a Canadian–Australian actress and theatre director. A graduate of the Playhouse Acting School in Vancouver, Rabe is best known for her appearances in the Australian films '' Sirens ...

as Joan Ferguson

Special guest

as Sheila Bausch *

as Eve Wilder *

Gary Sweet Gary Sweet (born 22 May 1957) is an Australian film and television actor known for his roles in ''Alexandra's Project'' (as Steve), ''Police Rescue'' (as Sergeant "Mickey" McClintock), ''Cody (TV series), Cody'' (as Cody), ''Big Sky (Australian ...

as Dale Langdon

Recurring

David de Lautour David Hugh de Lautour (born 28 November 1982) is a New Zealand television actor, producer and director. He was born in Christchurch, Canterbury, New Zealand and attended King's College, then The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) to w ...

as Dr. Greg Miller *

Jacquie Brennan Jacquie Brennan is an Australian stage, television and film actress Brennan has appeared in television, film, theatre and voice-over roles. Brennan is known for her roles in '' Bullpitt!,'' ''The Hollowmen,'' and her most known role in Austral ...

as Deputy Governor Linda Miles * Peter O'Brien as Tony Cockburn * Emily Havea as Mon Alson * Louisa Mignone as Zaina Saad * Alexandra Schepisi as Cynthia Rattray * Dion Mills as Joe Hoxon * Marco Chiappi as Liam Skinner * Tom Wren as Dominic Slade * Kevin Harrington as Officer Roberts * Alex Andreas as Detective Kanellis * Mereoni Vuki as Detective McKenner * Cecilia Low as Officer Deng * Nicholas Farnell as Detective Jones * Patrick Harvey as Detective Morelli * Cle Morgan as Carla Sturgess * Lana Williams as Kath Maxwell * Greg Fryer as Blair Mitchell

Episodes

Production

Season eight of ''Wentworth'' went into production in October 2019. It consists of twenty episodes, titled "Redemption", and featured the first ten episodes in 2020, while the final episodes were broadcast in 2021. Brian Walsh, Foxtel Executive Director of Television commented that "Wentworth has been the shining star of Foxtel’s extensive slate of Australian dramas and we are very proud to call “action” on the new season. We are indebted to the remarkable creative talent involved and to showcase the outstanding line-up of actors who bring to life this compelling series."

joined the cast as Lou Kelly, a former top dog of Wentworth Correctional Facility who often uses a violent approach to get what she wants, along with Jane Hall as Ann Reynolds, a general manager of extreme authority, taking control of the prison following the siege, and Zoe Terakes as transgender character Reb Keane, a meek and shy prisoner and love interest for Lou. It was later announced that actress Vivienne Awosoga would be joining the cast as Judy Bryant. The characters originally appeared in ''

Prisoner A prisoner, also known as an inmate or detainee, is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement or captivity in a prison or physical restraint. The term usually applies to one serving a Sentence (law), se ...

'' in which Lou Kelly was played by

Louise Siversen Louise Siversen is an Australian actress. She is known for her television roles, including Lou Kelly in ''Prisoner'' (1984–1986), Debbie in '' The Flying Doctors'' (1988–1990), and 2012-2017 Heather Looby in '' House Husbands''. She has a ...

, Ann Reynolds by Gerda Nicolson, Reb Keane by

Janet Andrewartha Janet Andrewartha (16 September 1951 – 26 July 2024) was an Australian television and theatre actress and director and singer. Andrewartha began her career as a high school music teacher before attending drama school. She graduated in 1979 an ...

and Judy Bryant by

Betty Bobbitt Betty Ann Bobbitt (February 7, 1939 – November 30, 2020) was an American actress, director, singer, and playwright based in Australia, with a career that spanned over 60 years, encompassing theatre, television, and film. Bobbitt was best ...

. In June 2020, it was announced that

would join the cast as Sheila Bausch, a cult member accused of mass murder, theft and arson. It was announced in late 2020 that

had been cast as Eve Wilder and is set to appear in the final part of the eighth season in 2021. Bursill portrayed the original Sonia Stevens character in ''Prisoner'', while the character she will be portraying in ''Wentworth'' was originally played by Lynda Stoner in ''Prisoner''.

Reception

Ratings

Accolades

Equity Ensemble Awards * Nominated: Most Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series – ''Wentworth'' (Season 8, Part 1) TV Tonight Awards * Won: TV Tonight Award for Best Australian Drama Series – ''Wentworth'' (Season 8, Part 1)

International broadcast

The season premiered in Australia on

on 28 July 2020. and on August 5 on

5STAR 5Star (stylized as 5STAR) is a British free-to-air television channel owned by Channel 5 Broadcasting Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global, which is grouped under Paramount Networks UK & Australia division. It originally laun ...

in the UK. In New Zealand, the season is distributed on

TVNZ Television New Zealand (, "Te Reo Tātaki" meaning "The Leading Voice"), more commonly referred to as TVNZ, is a New Zealand state-owned media company and Crown entity. The company operates a television network, streaming service, and news se ...

TVNZ 2 TVNZ 2 () is the second New Zealand television channel owned and operated by the state-owned broadcaster Television New Zealand (TVNZ). It targets a younger audience than its sister channel, TVNZ 1. TVNZ 2's line up consists of dramas, comedie ...

and

TVNZ OnDemand TVNZ+ (), formerly known as TVNZ OnDemand, is an over-the-top New Zealand television and video on demand streaming service offered by TVNZ. It offers a variety of free content, such as news updates and programmes seen on TVNZ channels. TVNZ+ o ...

streaming service. In June 2021, it was announced that Season 8, Part 2 was intended to premiere in Germany on 21 July 2021 on

Sky Atlantic Sky Atlantic is a British pay television channel owned by Sky Group, Sky Group Limited that launched in 2011 and broadcasts in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel airs original British-produced dramas like ''Fortitude (TV series), F ...

where it would air double episodes each week; the announcement was made ahead of Foxtel's confirmed release date of 24 August, therefore prompting Sky Atlantic in Germany to reschedule their premiere date and begin broadcast sometime after it has aired in Australia. The second part of the season premiered on the same day as Australia, 24 August 2021, on

in the UK.

Home media

References

External links

* {{Wentworth Prison 2020 Australian television seasons 2021 Australian television seasons Split television seasons Wentworth (TV series)