‘It’s the relationship I knew I wanted’: Scrublands star on learning to commit
Luke Arnold is an actor and writer who is best known for playing Michael Hutchence in Never Tear Us Apart. The 39-year-old discusses the endearing nickname he called his little sister as a child, a silly but romantic Christmas gesture and what he is most proud of in his current relationship.
“It’s interesting to reflect on the actresses I admired before I got into the acting industry who later became colleagues, like Heather Graham.”
My maternal great-great-grandmother thought her name was Jean, but when she was 70 she found her birth certificate, which said Jane. Her mother died when she was young, so I’m not sure what went wrong there, but she was still Jean to us all.
Some of my first memories are getting handwritten and recorded poems on cassettes from her. Looking at them recently, I can see the influence their form and patterns have had on my own writing.
When I was young, my maternal granny, Valerie, lived on a sailing boat with my step granddad. They also travelled around Australia on a motorbike. They were a great example of the freewheeling, bohemian lifestyle that was definitely passed down to me.
My parents, Nola and Colin, met while picking fruit. Mum is not the tallest lady and trained to become a jockey. It was her passion from a young age, but in the late 1970s she found the male-dominant culture of the racing industry too tough to realise her dream.
Mum is an enthusiastic and bubbly person. Before my younger sister, Ashley, and my brother, George, were born, I had her full attention for two years. It was great, as it meant that when I started school, I was on my way to reading and writing.
When I was just a baby myself, I used to call my sister “my little darling”, as we were so close. In the teen years we grew apart a bit, but since 2019 we’ve become close again. Ashley’s a web designer and is living the life of a digital nomad.
My first celebrity crush was Amy Jo Johnson, the actress who played the Pink Power Ranger on Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
It’s interesting to reflect on the actresses I admired before I got into the acting industry who later became colleagues, like Heather Graham, star of Boogie Nights, which is one of my favourite films. When Heather enlisted me to act opposite her on her 2018 film Half Magic, it was a “pinch-me” moment. One minute I would be talking to her as a colleague, then the next I’d think, “You’re HEATHER GRAHAM!”
My first serious relationship was with Hayley at Sunshine Beach High School in Queensland. We bonded over acting and performing. It was nice to meet a girl after my teenage years in Sydney, where I’d worked as a clown, doing parties and magic, mostly around dudes.
While at drama school [WAAPA in Perth], I picked up a girlfriend from the airport dressed in wrapping paper. I’d asked her what she wanted for Christmas and she’d replied, “Just you.” I took that literally. It was a silly, ridiculous, romantic gesture. I’m glad camera phones weren’t a big thing back then.
In the 2022 NITV SBS series True Colours, Rarriwuy Hick and I both played detectives. Filming that was a huge education for me. My touchstones on the Northern Territory set were the women – Rurriway and Arrernte/Warlpiri woman Marie Ellis, with whom we consulted daily to follow cultural protocol.
It was nerve-racking to be the white fella who was ignorant of so many things. But the First Nations people had such generosity teaching me about that part of the country, and about the practices that impacted storylines, like men’s business, kinship and payback. There was overwhelming care for us outsiders coming in.
I’ve been with my current partner, Laura, for a year. We met while making a film 16 years ago and I was completely and madly infatuated with her. We were both young and at that time I was ill-equipped to handle such strong feelings.
We had a couple of false starts that left us both feeling tender, but we kept returning to the flame. Something I’m proud of is that we kept showing up, as it would have been easy to just turn it into a story of heartbreak and not deal with it.
We’ve always been great friends throughout it all. Laura is the person I want to call with good news, with a question, or if I’m anxious about something. It’s the relationship I knew I wanted, and I’m very grateful to be in it now.
Luke Arnold stars in Scrublands, premiering November 16 on Stan.
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OBSESSED WITH // yapping, pinterest, reading, writing,claw clips, kk arnold, womens sports, and lemonade!
FACTS ABOUT MILLI;
I actually play basketball, and I have summer games/scrimmages so while i do write, I am going to be writing when I am free (like all the time)
I pour a lot of my time into writing/sports, and I hope to go pro one day or maybe become a sports journalist!
I love music, and reading/writing with music really helps me get in the zone.
I most certainly have limits, and I’m not comfortable with MEN interacting.
“What kind of work will you write ☹️”
I will be writing angst, fluff, cute headcanons, and anything sent to my ask. (please send me ask I have no idea wtf to write 😞)
that’s all i have for now, let me know what you guys want and give me ideas girlies !
“Who is Milli Writing for ?”
~ as of right now i am writing for Azzi Fudd, Kate Martin, Kk Arnold, Ines Bettencourt , Emily Engstler, Aubrey Griffin, Jana El Alfy, Aaliyah Edwards, Ice Brady, Ashlynn Shade and Nika Muhl, Diana Taurasi, Syd Colson,Theresa Plaisance and more! 
taylorswift: Sydney, Sydney, Sydney, Sydney… what a whirlwind of endless magical moments with you. I’m so grateful that we got to be the first tour to play Accor Stadium 4 times. I’ll never forget singing with Sabrina, the chaotic acoustic mashups, and the crowds that were louder (singing AND screaming) than I thought humanly possible. I want to thank all of the Aussie fans for being so positive and passionate, so funny and wild and FUN. Love you forever 🤍