Aaron Brennan
Aaron Brennan is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Matt Wilson. The actor originally auditioned for the role of Tyler Brennan and participated in a long casting process, during which he sent the producers a recording of himself performing a scene, before attending an audition. Producers ultimately selected Travis Burns to play Tyler, but created the additional role of Aaron for Wilson. Like Tyler, Aaron was introduced as the brother of established character Mark Brennan. Wilson relocated from Sydney to Melbourne for filming, and debuted four months after Tyler's arrival, on 16 June 2015. The character was initially intended to be a guest part, but due to Wilson's "endearing quality", he was promoted to the full-time cast.
Aaron is portrayed as a confident, happy, occasionally naive, optimist. He was initially shown to be closer to Tyler than Mark, but the brothers were bonded when their estranged father was introduced. The character had a unique entrance to the show as an exotic dancer performing at The Waterhole. Wilson took dance lessons ahead of his first scenes. Aaron has embarked on various careers throughout his duration, including bodyguard and social media manager. Aaron is openly gay, and he has formed relationships with established regular Nate Kinski, despite initially having nothing in common, and later Tom Quill and David Tanaka. The character has received a positive response from television critics and viewers. He was named Best New Male Character of 2015 by a columnist for Soap World. Wilson remained as a regular cast member until the show's finale episode, which was broadcast on 28 July 2022. Aaron returned in the Amazon Freevee revival of Neighbours on 13 November 2023. He departed the series on 1 September 2025, shortly before its conclusion. Aaron made a return for the final episode on 11 December 2025.
Casting
On 17 May 2015, it was announced actor and model Matt Wilson had joined the cast as Aaron Brennan, the middle brother of established characters Mark Brennan and Tyler Brennan. Wilson was given the role of Aaron after a long casting process, which started with Wilson recording himself performing a scene and sending the footage to the producers, who then invited him to attend an audition. During the lengthy waiting period, Wilson watched the show "religiously", which made him want to be a part of the cast even more. Months after his audition, Wilson was sent an email informing him he had been cast. In 2022, Wilson revealed that he had originally auditioned for the role of Tyler, but after the role went to Burns, producers created the role of Aaron for him. Of joining the cast, Wilson said "It's surreal. This stuff is part of your living room growing up and never in my wildest dreams did I think I would have this chance." Wilson relocated from Sydney to Melbourne, where the Neighbours studios are located. He made his debut appearance as Aaron during the episode broadcast on 16 June 2015. Executive producer Jason Herbison later revealed that Aaron was only ever intended to be a guest character, but Wilson's "endearing quality" led him to be promoted to the full-time cast.Development
Characterisation
In his fictional backstory, Aaron left his hometown of Port Lincoln shortly after Mark's departure. Aaron had not seen his brothers in six years, as he was living on the other side of the country, but they had kept in contact and stayed close. Aaron gets bored doing the same job every day and he eventually realised that working down the mines was not something he wanted to do anymore. Wilson told Claire Crick of All About Soap that after Aaron saw a male dance show in Perth, he made "a snap decision" to become an exotic dancer. Wilson said Aaron's career choice was similar to the characters featured in the 2012 film Magic Mike.At the time of his arrival, Aaron was much closer to his younger brother Tyler as they both liked to live in the moment, whereas Mark was a bit more sensible and OCD. Wilson thought Aaron liked being the middle brother because he loves to be the centre of attention. The actor commented, "There's definitely no middle-child syndrome here! He's quick to mediate any arguments between the other two." Wilson also said Aaron was opportunistic like Tyler, but he understood limitations like Mark. McGregor opined Mark's younger siblings made him a stronger character, while Burns thought Aaron's arrival had changed the dynamic between Mark and Tyler.
Wilson described Aaron as "a very confident young guy", who loves life and is not easily fazed. He also likes to make others happy. The actor also told Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy: "Aaron's an infectious person. He's really happy, he's an optimist, he's got a lot of energy and there's a really good vibe which comes off him. He's received well by absolutely everyone." A writer for the official Neighbours website described the character as having "a big heart, and a cheeky streak". They also said Aaron's family was important to him and he would do anything for his siblings. Speaking to Hazel Bradley of The West Australian, Wilson admitted that he shared some similarities with his character, such as optimism and selflessness. However, Wilson thought Aaron was also naïve and occasionally vulnerable.
Aaron is openly gay, and Wilson told Peter Gray of Q News that he felt no pressure portraying a gay character, as there was a lot of support for Aaron. He called Aaron "a typical Aussie gay guy", which, he believed, was not well represented on Australian television at the time. Wilson turned to his own gay friends while researching Aaron's wardrobe. He thought the character was similar to them and based the clothing on items they wear. Wilson thought Aaron would be a good boyfriend because he was romantic, but his career put a strain on his past relationships. While his siblings have accepted Aaron's sexuality, their father struggled with it, but Aaron refused to let it get to him.
Introduction
Mark contacted Aaron after fearing that Tyler had "gone off the rails", following his arrest. Mark knew Aaron and Tyler had a close relationship and he needed Aaron's help. Both Mark and Tyler assumed Aaron still worked down the mines in Western Australia, but he had secretly switched careers to become an exotic dancer. At the same time Mark contacted Aaron, he was booked to appear at a charity bingo night hosted by Sheila Canning at The Waterhole. Aaron was set to perform his routine in the bar when bingo was called. Sheila encouraged Mark and Tyler to attend the event and they were "stunned" to see their brother half-naked on the stage.Wilson explained that he had no dance experience coming into the show and took private lessons ahead of filming. He commented, "I hit the stage with 100 per cent confidence, so all of my efforts paid off!" Mark was unimpressed with his younger brother's new career choice and berated him for it, while Tyler was amused. He was further cheered up when Aaron helped him out at the garage. Mark made an effort to bond with his brothers, after seeing how close Aaron and Tyler were.
Relationship with Nate Kinski
As Aaron settled onto Ramsay Street, Tyler learned he was single and he decided to try and set Aaron up on a date with his friend Nate Kinski. Tyler's motive for the matchmaking scheme was his need to repair his broken friendship with Nate, who had not forgiven him for stealing a prescription pad from Karl Kennedy. Aaron and Nate's first meeting did not go well, as they disagreed about everything and realised that they had nothing in common. Despite Tyler's efforts to get them to agree on something, Aaron and Nate realised what he was trying to do and told him that nothing was going to happen between them. Tyler's scheme did manage to get Nate to reconcile with him. Of the scenes, Wilson told Kilkelly: "Although Aaron is quite an infectious person and everyone receives him really well, for some unbeknown reason Nate just gives him the cold shoulder. Aaron doesn't really know how to handle that. The scene where Tyler tries to set us up is hilarious - it's an absolute car crash of a scene!"Nate initially did not want anything to do with Aaron, but then Aaron got involved with his feud with Alistair Hall in an effort to help him out. Wilson said that Nate did not like Aaron's "game-playing". Sheila later charged a reluctant Nate with the task of getting Aaron to sign an employment contract for The Waterhole. Nate kept making snide comments about Aaron's career, so he refused to sign the contract. Sheila told Nate to make things right with Aaron, forcing him to beg. Aaron enjoyed seeing Nate's discomfort and agreed to sign the contract if he only dealt with Sheila. However, when Sheila suffered lock jaw, she forced Aaron and Nate to work together and they could resist taunting each other. Nate teased Aaron by telling him he found him to be attractive, while Aaron went to kiss him, only to pull away quickly. A TV Soap writer observed "it's beginning to look like there might be a mutual attraction behind Nate and Aaron's guarded exteriors."
Aaron and Nate were forced to spend more time together when Naomi Canning locked them in an outdoor hotel room with a glass front as part of a promotion for Lassiter's Hotel. The storyline started with Naomi hiring Aaron and a female model to pose as a happy couple. However, when the female model failed to turn up, Naomi grabbed Nate and locked him inside the room with Aaron. Nate decided to make the most of the situation and he hoped he could annoy Aaron in the process. Wyatt said, "after a while Nate doesn't even notice the audience and starts to lighten up, which surprises Aaron." Naomi's plan was a success, as Lassiter's received positive press about its support for same-sex relationships. She then asked the men to do something special for a photograph and Nate spontaneously kissed Aaron. Nate enjoyed the kiss and it became clear that he had strong feelings for Aaron. Wyatt thought the characters were "a good balance", but a future relationship depended on whether they could be themselves around each other.
When Aaron attempted to cheer up his friend Josh Willis by acting as his wingman for the evening, he put himself in danger when her boyfriend Evan Shields appeared. Aaron tried to smooth things over, but he and Evan squared up to each other, leaving Josh to defuse the situation. As Aaron walked home, Evan appeared and threw a drink in his face, before attacking him. Wilson said it was a "pretty bad" moment, but Nate came to Aaron's rescue and dragged Evan away, before scaring him off. Aaron did not have a chance to thank Nate, as he left the scene. Neither Aaron and Nate were willing to accept that they had romantic feelings for each other. Nate believed Aaron was not interested in him, so when Aaron offered to be his slave for the week to make up for injuring him during Tai Chi, Nate was unaware Aaron was trying to flirt with him. Nate later confronted Aaron, who confessed to having feelings for him. But Nate thought Aaron was joking and Aaron was "crushed" by his rejection. Tyler then told Nate that his brother was attracted to him.
Aaron and Nate eventually developed a relationship. After Nate got involved in a fight, he decided to leave town to clear his head. Aaron was "angry and upset" when he learnt that Nate had returned to Australia and had not been in contact with him. Wilson said Aaron and Nate had "a lot of stuff to sort out", while adding that the characters wanted to be together, but were unsure if they could make it work. He continued, "Ever since they first met they've always argued about the small suff and they're still doing it now." Wilson later commented that as much as they loved each other, they could not live with each other because they were opposites. He also said that the couple complemented one another well, as "Nate is really closed off, whereas Aaron is a lot more free and happy." When Nate eventually returned, he struggled to reconnect with Aaron and was "gutted" to learn that Aaron had moved on with someone else while he was away. Wilson added that Aaron resists a reconciliation as he has been hurt.