Mischa Barton is set to swap Hollywood for Australia as she joins the cast of Aussie soap Neighbours, 20 years after finding fame in The OC.
The 37-year-old actress, will be joining the soap after it was rescued by Amazon's Freevee, following its' axing by Channel 5.
She will play the mysterious Reece, an American who is new to Ramsay Street, and may not be quite what she seems.
Ahead of joining the show, Mischa, who remains best known as The OC's Marissa Cooper which ran from 2003 – 2006, said: "I’m excited to be part of this iconic show’s next chapter, and I am really looking forward to being back in Australia, a place I know and love!
"I think the character of Reece is going to be a great role for me to explore and play with."
Neighbours’ executive producer Jason Herbison added: “With Neighbours launching on Amazon Freevee in North America, we are beyond excited to have an actor of Mischa’s calibre join us for the beginning of this exciting new chapter.
“Mischa’s character is dynamic and unpredictable and will have an instant presence on Ramsay Street. Our loyal viewers are going to love her, locally and abroad.”
It comes after filming commenced on the new series of the soap, with the returning stars celebrating their reunion.
A sweet snap was posted to the Neighbours social media account which included a few members of the cast posing with a ribbon at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on set.
The caption for the post read: "Lights, camera, action, let's go! Brand new #Neighbours is officially in production!"
The announcement post was instantly flooded with comments from hyped-up fans who “can’t wait” to have the Australian show back on their TV screens.
One fan commented: "Omg I’m so so happy. Thanks Neighbours and especially the actors and team. It’s you guys that make life so wonderful”, while another said: “Yesss yesss yesss, I've watched since it 1st came over here in England x”.
Actor Alan Fletcher, who plays Dr Karl Kennedy, told The Sun that producers were keeping the storyline under wraps.
He said: “They are keeping it completely under wraps. We’ve been told one thing and that’s when we come back it’s going to be huge.
“It’s a big story and will involve a lot of people but we don’t know anything about it.
“There will come a day when your inbox goes ‘ping’ and it will say first script. Everyone will read it and the WhatsApp group will go mad.”
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