04-08-2025
Wentworth star Danielle Cormack reflects on Logies win as she stars in new season of The Twelve with Sam Neill
The Logies crowned a host of deserving stars on Sunday night, but exactly 10 years ago it was the prison drama Wentworth that was a big winner.
The acclaimed program won Most Outstanding Drama Series at the 2015 ceremony as well as a silver Logie for Most Outstanding Actress for its main star Danielle Cormack, who played inmate Bea Smith on the hit show.
But for the New Zealand actress – who appears on Season 3 of the award-winning anthology series The Twelve, titled The Twelve: Cape Rock Killer – it's a collaborative effort.
'For me, to be acknowledged for any work in any way, there's no accolade greater than the other,' Cormack, 54, told ahead of Season 3 premiere on Monday, August 4 on BINGE.
'Just walking off set and someone going, 'Hey, that was great,' is just as thrilling as getting a nomination. And then also winning the award and look at these awards events – they're filled with people that have poured their heart onto the screen, heart and soul.'
'Of course, it's lovely getting that acknowledgment, but I always think there's so many people that help build a character. I've become the vessel that puts it on the screen, but you've got wardrobe, make-up, the writers, the producers, there's so many. I just feel like it really should be shared by everyone. But it's a great honour.'
In the years since Wentworth, Cormack has starred on a number of projects including Erotic Stories, Year Of, and most recently played a cutthroat sex worker on the much-talked about series Madam opposite Rachel Griffiths.
Now, Cormack ventures from the dark side to the good side, playing a prosecutor in The Twelve anthology series alongside Sam Neill, 77 – an opportunity she welcomed with open arms.
'Before I'd even been asked the question in its entirety, I already was saying, 'Yes, yes, I will be part of the show,'' she recalled.
'I had seen Season 1 and Season 2 – I thought they were absolutely stellar seasons. So I was really looking forward to seeing how they would craft this one and also what character they were wanting me to play.'
In The Twelve: Cape Rock Killer, Cormack plays prosecutor Gabe Nichols who goes against defence lawyer Brett Colby (Neill). Surprisingly, this is her first time starring onscreen with Neill, who also comes from Aotearoa in New Zealand.
Cormack and Neill – who won Best Lead Actor in a Drama for The Twelve at the Logies last night – are both from the same town in New Zealand, Aotearoa, but this is the first time they have worked together.
'There was a great connection, both being from New Zealand,' she shared. 'I had met Sam several times over the years. But this was the first time that I had been on a set with him, and that was a huge honour. He was so generous and warm on set, and there's no airs or graces about him. He's incredibly encompassing of everyone there, and he really sets a lovely tone on set.'
'I really loved picking the history between Gabe Nichols, my character, and Sam's character just because Gabe used to be Colby's solicitor until she jumped over to the dark side and became a prosecutor. So there was a lot to unpack there, which made it fun.'
The duo are joined by another New Zealand actress, stage and screen star Sarah Peirse, who also appeared on the BINGE and Foxtel series Love Me.
'I had the best time with Sarah. She is such a stunning human being and just delightful. She's so funny,' Cormack said.
'But she's an extraordinary actress, and when I heard that she was going to be in the show and I was going to be working with her as well, my jaw hit the floor. She's just such a formidable actress.'
The Twelve: Cape Rock Killer follows Colby gets personal for Colby, who is thrown into a murder trial to defend the husband of a lifelong friend accused of murdering wannabe crime author Amanda Taylor (played by Eryn Jean Norvill), who was researching a cold-case crime from 1968.
All the characters are 'complex, broken, brilliant, flawed, vulnerable female characters', just how Cormack likes to play them.
'I don't believe that there are strong female characters,' she shared. 'People often remark on the strong, resilient characters I play, and I don't view them like that. I think they're mostly incredibly broken and flawed, and the strength comes from their vulnerability and their circumstances.'
And Cormack says it's great how female narratives are driving a lot of series these days.
'We've had a lot of women in the industry that have been championing female driven stories,' she said.
'If we can keep doing that, but also not just females, but men or in our industry to keep exploring the female psyche on screen and all of its facets, then we're moving in the right direction.'
