Bruce Samazan was a 90s heartthrob thanks to his roles in E Street, Neighbours, and Home and Away, but he quit acting after meeting his wife and now has a ‘normal job’
Home and Away star Bruce Samazan, who played the role of Brad Cooper, looks completely unrecognisable since his time on the Australian soap. The now 54 year old has since waved goodbye to his acting career with a different career away from the spotlight.
During the early 90s, Bruce shot to fame as the only male actor to play a regular role on three of Australia’s biggest soaps, E Street, Neighbours, and Home and Away. While he only had a six-month stint on Home and Away between 1996 and 1997, he certainly made as impact as he portrayed psychotic Brad Cooper, who raped Chloe Richards (played by Kristy Wright).
Before this, he had previously made a guest appearance on Home and Away as Mick in 1989 for four episodes. He was later awarded a TV Week Silver Logie for the most popular actor on Australian TV in 1992 and even released a rap single the following year.
Despite his soap success, Bruce decided to step away from the spotlight and instead opted for a ‘normal job’. Previously speaking to Stellar, he revealed that meeting his wife shifted his perspective.
“I got to a point where I was touching 30. I’d met my wife and we were talking about kids and buying things,” he revealed. With acting jobs becoming scarce, Bruce, a former bricklayer, chose stability over the uncertainty of fame.
He confessed: “I had to make a big decision and that was, ‘As much as I love it, is acting going to provide that for me? For us?'” Despite not being thrilled about leaving his acting world behind, Bruce knew he had to be realistic and found a new career path in real estate.
Now, the former heartthrob lives a quiet life in Noosa, Queensland, with his wife Nanette and daughters Leala and Zoe. While his girls have shown interest in music and acting, they’re unaware of their dad’s past fame.
“They don’t understand exactly how popular Dad was,” Bruce admitted. “For them it’s like, ‘Dad’s been on TV… once or twice.'”
Nowadays, Bruce works in real estate, focusing on retirement villages and resorts in the Sunshine Coast. However, he did make a brief return to our screens in 2020 as he reprised his role of Mark Gottlieb for the Neighbours 35th anniversary.
While it was his first TV appearance in almost 30 years, he hasn’t entirely ruled out a return to acting. “I’ve gotten a little older, a little greyer and a little rounder, but potentially that could lead to new roles. Who knows?” he previously shared.
