Old Neighbours scenes are set to be recut into phone dramas actors complain about
The plan uses AI to turn archive acting into short vertical episodes, and actors fear the same trick could replace new work.
Global News Podcast · Bolsonaro declares himself 'Brazil's leader'TV critic Scott Bryan, discussing Neighbours, the long-running Australian TV soap, framed the plan for the show as a question of reuse. The issue, in his words, is whether “something that you had acted for is now being used for a different purpose.”
According to Bryan, producers plan to take classic storylines, including early performances by actress Margot Robbie from the early 2000s before her Hollywood career, and recut them as microdramas. A microdrama is a scripted video about two to three minutes long, framed vertically for a phone and ending on a cliffhanger to pull viewers to the next episode.
The format is already large, Bryan said, a $25 billion industry popular in China and India, where many entries use animation and artificial intelligence to meet fast turnarounds. In this case AI would reframe material that was never shot for a phone.
Bryan noted the planned reuse has drawn complaints from original cast members, including actor Stefan Dennis, who played Paul Robertson and has spoken out against the repackaging. When Robbie performed those storylines, she could never have imagined they would be used decades later in a different form to make money, and the question is whether performers should share in that new use. Robbie has been asked for comment and has not spoken publicly.
Bryan said Fremantle, the production company behind the show, has said little, but may see the move as a way to earn more from its archive while the show has no streaming partner, meaning no streaming deal bringing in money to support it.
The larger worry comes from actors who fear they cannot compete with technology repackaging what they already did. Bryan was imagining what actors in that position would say, rather than quoting a particular person, when he suggested many would say, “that’s going to put me out of work.”
Questions people ask
Has Margot Robbie herself objected?
No. The reports cited say Robbie has been asked for comment by several newspapers and has not spoken publicly. The objections so far have come from other former cast members, including Stefan Dennis.
How does AI turn an old TV episode into a phone drama?
Producers take footage shot years ago for television and use AI tools to reframe and recut it vertically, in short segments. Because the original was composed for a wide TV screen, the phone version has to be cropped, reframed, and paced for two to three minute episodes.
Why would a studio prefer old footage to new shows?
Bryan suggests the appeal is a chance to earn more revenue from material the company already owns, at a time when Neighbours has no streaming partner. In general, reusing archive avoids the cost of a new shoot, while short episodes with cliffhangers are designed to keep phone viewers watching.