Home & Away and Neighbours star Mat Stevenson details being ‘drugged and raped' by two men before TV fame
The 56‑year‑old played Skinner on Neighbours in 1988 before playing heartthrob Adam Cameron on Home & Away from 1989 to 1994.He told
The Sydney Morning Herald
that shortly before landing his iconic role, he was exploring a possible career in real estate when a business presentation took a horrific turn.
The actor recalled being offered a drink by one of the men present, and soon after, feeling himself lose control.
'This other bloke (then) came out of nowhere. I was paralysed, I was a strong young kid, I was a good sportsman, but I was paralysed,' he said.
Stevenson said that the two men raped him while he was 'blacked out.'
The next morning, he woke up alone. 'I was in a fair bit of pain, and I was late for work. I told my dad, I said, 'I think I've just been raped', and he ignored it,' he said. They never spoke about it again.
Just one day later, Stevenson received a phone call telling him he had scored a role on Neighbours, the beginning of a career that would eventually take him to Home & Away.
'I just so badly wanted to be there that I suppressed that assault,' he said. 'I was just, bang, straight down into denial.'
While his on-screen success grew, the pain endured.
'Inside, I just felt like my soul was being ripped out … I wanted to scream,' Stevenson said.
'I didn't know how to unpack the pain, so I'd mask it. I built a character around me, which was the character that people saw. He looks laid-back, he looks laconic, he looks like he doesn't care about much. I had to hide those demons that were inside. It was really painful, and I found that it would spike whenever I had absolute moments of success or joy.'
His world was shaken again when his father died of a heart attack in the 1990s. 'I was full of self-loathing,' he said.
'It was like I was allergic to myself. My dad's death really ramped up my high-risk behaviour: alcohol and gambling. I shut down. I put up this facade that I didn't give a s**t. I just couldn't handle life any more. I didn't have the skills to navigate my way through it.'
After leaving Home & Away in 1994, he spiralled further, losing everything and ending up homeless within a year.
'I was just in free fall, suffering in silence, spending what little money I had left and finding solace in the bottom of a schooner glass. I walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge; it was pissing down, and I remember standing there and thinking, 'Righto, if you want to do it, now's the time. But if you don't do it now, it's time to move out of pity town. It's time to move on.''
If you or someone you know needs help, contact 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732), or Sexual Assault Counselling Australia on 1800 211 028, or Lifeline on 13 11 14.
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