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Spartacus star finally finds work in Oz

Swashbuckling Aussie actor Liam McIntyre has swapped a sword for a gun in his first major local production in the telemovie The Killing Field.

McIntyre was plucked from relative obscurity when he landed the lead role in the TV series Spartacus which was made in New Zealand for US cable channel Starz.

Until then he had a resume that was light in detail and, even he admits, slightly misleading.

His list of credits before appearing in Spartacus included a few short films, a guest role on Neighbours, a few episodes on police drama Rush and a part in the-Steven Spielberg produced mini-series The Pacific.

However, McIntyre's not even sure if he even appears in The Pacific, so he was surprised when he landed the role in Spartacus which has kicked off his career.

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"I had a day on Neighbours, just so I can say I have been on Neighbours and a day on The Pacific which was cut but is still on my bio," McIntyre joked.

"They say I'm in it (The Pacific) but I'm not sure where...when they read my name out for Spartacus I thought they got it wrong."

Now he has established himself as a lead actor, doors have been flung open for him at home and led to him returning home for The Killing Field.

He landed the role after being asked to audition by The Killing Field's lead actress Rebecca Gibney who is also co-producer on the Seven Network feature.

"Now I have done that (Spartacus) and come back it's a whole new world and I am getting opportunities I would not have got before I did this," he said.

"It absolutely is my first (major) Australian production...which is the reverse way to do things for sure.

"You can't say no when Rebecca Gibney asks you to audition...it was a compliment."

Before shooting The Killing Field, McIntyre played another scantily clad character, Sotiris, in the upcoming movie The Legend Of Hercules.

The Legend of Hercules was released in January and starred Kellan Lutz as Hercules/Alcides and Gaia Weiss as Hebe.

"It's good to get back into pants again and play something in the present," McIntyre quipped.

The Killing Field starts with a girl who goes missing in a country town and in the search to find her, five bodies are discovered in a field.

McIntyre plays detective Dan Wild. The telemovie also stars Peter O'Brien, who plays detective inspector Lachlan Mckenzie and Gibney as detective sergeant Eve Winter.

McIntyre said the production is worthy of being on a cable TV channel.

"It's a HBO style quality production," McIntyre said.

Gibney started working on The Killing Field soon after family drama Packed To The Rafters, in which she played Julie Rafter for six seasons, ceased production.

There's reason to believe that if the telemovie is a success, it could spawn a TV series.

* The Killing Field starts on Sunday, May 4 on the Seven Network


3 min read

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Source: AAP


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