EastEnders fans couldn’t believe their eyes as a familiar face from Albert Square cropped up in an entirely new and dark guise.
Aaron Sidwell, who was infamous for his portrayal of troubled Steven Beale – the prodigal son of Adam Woodyatt’s Ian Beale – between 2007 and 2017, has left viewers speechless. Despite being the fourth actor to step into Steven’s shoes, Aaron is celebrated by many fans of the soap as the definitive incarnation of its notorious rogue.
Shock waves went through fans browsing Amazon Prime Video when they found Aaron starring in the crime thriller Fyre Rises. He’s taken on the role of Priest, an extremist with an insidious talent for provoking others into committing brutal acts.
Soap devotees have been dumbstruck by Aaron’s dramatic transformation, which sees him laden in striking make-up, hair smoothed to the side, and adorned in leopard prints that would put Pat Butcher’s wardrobe to shame.
His depiction of the sinister character has sent ripples of excitement across social media, with viewers commending Aaron’s performance. One admirer gushed on Instagram: “He is incredible” – while another echoed: “such a good baddie”, reports the Mirror.
Another fan chimed in, adding: “Couldn’t imagine anyone else doing this role he is fantastic.”
A former EastEnders star is terrifying fans in his new film, Fyre Rises
(Image: London Knights Productions)
Soap enthusiasts will be thrilled to know that Aaron is currently treading the boards in London’s West End, starring in a revival of the beloved musical Oliver!
The show is lighting up the Gielgud Theatre until September and has been masterfully revived by director and choreographer Matthew Bourne, in a Cameron Mackintosh production that brings Lionel Bart’s unforgettable tunes back to life.
In a chat with BroadwayWorld, Aaron shared his deep-rooted passion for theatre – it’s where he honed his craft. Reflecting on his journey from stage to screen and back again, he said: “When I first started working in TV, I felt quite like a fish out of water, as opposed to when I first started doing theatre. Then, when I left the TV show that I was on, I started to get a lot more auditions for theatre, and the ball started rolling from there.”
Aaron can currently be seen playing Bill Sykes in Matthew Bourne’s production of Oliver!
(Image: Instagram)
Aaron also opened up about the daunting task of stepping into the shoes of Bill Sikes in the musical, a role immortalised by Oliver Reed in the 1968 film adaptation. He admitted: “Bill’s been played by hundreds of actors all over the world. But really, when you say Bill Sikes, people think of Oliver Reed.”
“I hadn’t anticipated how tricky that can be when putting that in front of an audience. Some people have a very specific idea in mind of not just what villains can be, but what specifically this villain has been in the past. And so whenever you’re reinventing something that’s thought of in that regard, it has its tricky areas, but the beauty for me is that I am able to bring something to it in the way that I see it.”
Catch the new release ‘Fyre Rises’, written and directed by Paul Knight, now streaming on Amazon Prime, Apple TV, and Sky Store.