Chloe Brennan
Chloe Brennan is a fictional character from the Australian television soap opera Neighbours, played by April Rose Pengilly. Pengilly auditioned for the role without knowing anything about the character. Not long after she made plans to move to Los Angeles, Pengilly was invited for a screen test and she was offered the part of Chloe a week later. Neighbours marks her first regular television role, and she made her debut during the episode broadcast on 27 March 2018. Chloe is the sister of the established Brennan brothers, and had often been mentioned on-screen by her family prior to her arrival. Chloe is portrayed as "well-meaning", "carefree" and "fun-loving". She wants to get along with everyone and live her life to the fullest. However, she also suffers from intimacy and "daddy issues", due to her upbringing which saw her raised by her mother following her parents' separation.
Chloe comes to Erinsborough to reconnect with her brothers Mark Brennan and Aaron Brennan, following their father's death. Shortly after her introduction, writers established a romantic relationship between Chloe and her boss Leo Tanaka. An ongoing, issue-led storyline saw Chloe diagnosed with Huntington's disease. Pengilly enjoyed exploring another side to her character, and she hoped the story arc would raise awareness of the condition among viewers. Chloe comes into conflict with her family, neighbours and boss when she launches an escort service, which sees her charging men for platonic dates. The plot led to the introduction of millionaire businessman Pierce Greyson, who develops strong feelings for her.
Towards the end of 2018, producers decided to explore Chloe's bisexuality and began an unrequited love story as Chloe falls in love with Mark's girlfriend Elly Conway. Her former girlfriend Melissa Lohan was also introduced leading to further exploration of Chloe's fictional backstory. For her portrayal of Chloe, Pengilly was included on the long list for the Logie Award for Most Popular New Talent, despite not having appeared on-screen when voting opened. She also received a nomination for Best Soap Newcomer at the 2018 Digital Spy Reader Awards. Pengilly won Best Daytime Star at the 2021 Inside Soap Awards.
Chloe appeared up to the finale episode of Neighbours, which aired on 28 July 2022, and returned for the reboot on 13 November 2023. Pengilly left the show again on 28 December 2023 after Chloe and Elly Conway got married.
Casting
The character is the sister of the established Brennan brothers; Mark, Aaron, and Tyler who were introduced in 2010 and 2015 respectively. Chloe has been mentioned by her family on-screen several times, and Wilson teased her introduction in July 2017, saying "The Brennan family is expanding – we have got our mum coming onto the show, and a sister we have been talking about for years." On 1 March 2018, Alison Stephenson for The Daily Telegraph confirmed that actress and model April Rose Pengilly had been cast in the role of Chloe. Pengilly was asked to send over an audition tape to the producers using a "random" script they sent her. She was not given any details or description of the character she was reading for. The actress admitted that she "didn't think much of it", as she made plans to move to Los Angeles for work in September 2017. She explained, "I think it's a goal for most Aussie actors to be on one of these iconic Aussie shows that is beloved world wide, but I'd kind of given up on it, my goal was America."Pengilly received a call asking her to fly to Melbourne for a screen test, as the producers had narrowed it down to herself and another actor. She met with the actors playing Chloe's brothers and love interest. She learned that she had won the role a week later. While the producers selected Pengilly for the role of Chloe over Bonnie Anderson, they also created the role of Bea Nilsson for the latter. Majella Davis, who later played Krista Sinclair, also auditioned for the role. Pengilly said that she was asked why she was still in Australia and not Los Angeles, but she tried to "lay low" in an attempt to keep her casting a secret. After dying her hair blonder for the role, Pengilly spent six months posting photos of herself as a brunette on social media and setting Sydney as her location. Neighbours marks Pengilly's first regular television role, and she commutes between her home in Sydney and the studio in Melbourne. She found that Chloe was "one of the most fun, interesting roles I've ever been offered and I'm already having a ball playing her." The show's executive producer Jason Herbison said the crew were "delighted" to introduce Chloe and praised Pengilly's casting, saying she "brought a fantastic energy to the character". Pengilly made her debut appearance as Chloe on 27 March 2018.
Development
Characterisation
After reading the character biography, Pengilly thought the role could have been written just for her, as she and Chloe share a lot of similarities. She explained, "There are a lot of elements of my personality that are slight, but have been amped up to 100 per cent with Chloe. Sometimes my big mouth gets me into trouble like it does her, too!." Pengilly described Chloe as a "well-meaning person", who sometimes does or says the wrong thing, but never intends to hurt anyone. Pengilly likened Chloe to a puppy who "stumbles into trouble!" She also called her "very adventurous and very fun-loving", with "a big heart". Pengilly also told Daniel Kilkelly of Digital Spy, "She's not a bad girl, but she wants everything to be fun. She wants to get on with everyone and she wants to live life to the fullest."The character was also described as having a good sense of humour and being "a whirlwind of creative energy" by the serial's official website. She often hides her vulnerability and worries about getting hurt. The character's look is "casual feminine boho chic", a style worn by actresses Teresa Palmer and Sienna Miller. Pengilly confirmed that Chloe dates both men and women, saying she was "very carefree and open to everything life has to offer. She doesn't like to set limitations on anything." Chloe suffers from intimacy and "daddy issues", so she tries not to get close to her partners. Pengilly hoped Chloe was living up to the audience's expectations, as they had been teased about her introduction for a long time.
Introduction
In her fictional backstory, Chloe was in her early teens when her parents' separated, and she was raised away from her father and brothers by her mother Fay Brennan in Adelaide. The official show website said that Chloe did not have any contact with her father from that point and she saw her brothers very little, which left her feeling like an only child. After deciding against going to university, Chloe spent her time working various jobs, including waitressing, nannying and working on a minor celebrity's yacht.The character was introduced shortly after Burns left his role as Tyler Brennan. Chloe comes to Erinsborough to be with her brothers Aaron and Mark, after spending years travelling overseas on "an extended gap year". After running out of money, Chloe visits her brothers to repair their fractured relationships, but Mark is aware that she could leave as suddenly as she arrived. Pengilly felt like she had real brothers in McGregor and Wilson, as they were very welcoming towards her when she started, and she said her favourite scenes to film were set in the Brennan house.
After arriving in Erinsborough, Chloe meets up with Mark and they go to the local coffee shop to catch up. Mark's former girlfriend Elly Conway sees them together and is "curious" about the newcomer, but she is angered when she sees Chloe going through Mark's wallet after he leaves it unattended. Elly comes over to confront Chloe and "a tug-of-war" ensues as she tries to take back the wallet, which results in some of her hair being pulled out. When Mark returns, Elly tells him his date is stealing from him, but he reveals that Chloe is actually his younger sister. Chloe then upsets Tyler's former girlfriend Piper Willis when she asks how long she plans to stay in Tyler's room, as she was hoping to move in there. Pengilly commented that Chloe is not very "tactful" in the way she approaches the situation with Piper. Aaron eventually gives her his room.
Chloe later meets Elly again and openly admits that she is experimental when it comes to relationships and would not mind with "experimenting" with her some day, leaving Elly "horrified by her forward attitude." Aaron is happy to have his sister around, but Mark is more cautious, knowing that trouble tends to follow Chloe around. When Chloe successfully applies for an executive assistant job at Lassiters Hotel, Brandon Danker is tasked with checking her CV and it soon emerges that she has lied about her skills and previous jobs. Chloe decides to seduce Brandon in a bid to keep her job, and invites him to spend time with her in the spa at Number 32. They are soon interrupted by returning character Jane Harris, who disapproves of their antics.
Relationship with Leo Tanaka
Writers soon established a casual relationship between Chloe and her boss Leo Tanaka. The storyline begins when Leo is ordered by Terese Willis to fire Chloe for incompetency, after she evicts lawyer Toadfish Rebecchi from his office within the Lassiters complex. Leo decides not to fire Chloe when she resolves the situation with Toadie. He then makes a romantic advance towards her. A Neighbours publicist told Claire Crick of Soaplife that "Leo realises that maybe there's more to bolshy Chloe than meets the eye and he tries to seduce her." Chloe turns him down, as she does not want to risk her job. However, after she reads "a mysterious" email that leaves her "shaken", Chloe returns to Leo's office and crawls across his desk to kiss him. A stunt coordinator was hired to go through safety procedures for Chloe's desk crawl. Pengilly had to practice crawling across the desk, so that she was safe and that the desk did not break. Kano commented, "I did feel for her having to do that and being so new. We had to practice over and over."Kano thought it was a classic rebound storyline for his character, who broke up with his girlfriend shortly beforehand. He also thought that Leo and Chloe "definitely have great chemistry". He also admitted that some of the scenes between the characters may not have made it past the censor, and he was interested to see how much would have to be edited for the show's early evening time slot. In a later interview, Kano said Leo was capable of developing genuine feelings for Chloe despite the initial fun and casual nature of their relationship. He also pointed out that their affair could have consequences for them professionally, as Lassiters has a policy asking staff members not to date one another. He commented, "So I think it's destined for failure, but that's what makes it so exciting. The possibility of getting caught creates a thrill."
Chloe and Leo are caught kissing in his office by Chloe's mother Fay, who comes to Erinsborough unannounced. Fay is "not impressed" with Chloe, and later reveals that she is being forced to sell her house to cover Chloe's debts. The couple are also blackmailed by Brandon after he discovers their affair, but they continue to sneak around. They are eventually found out when they are late for Aaron and David Tanaka's engagement party. They become trapped in the loft of the Backpackers' hostel when Terese arrives. Both Mark and Leo's father Paul Robinson realise that they are together and come to confront them. Paul then demotes Leo for being "unprofessional". Leo later asks Chloe to continue their relationship now it is out in the open, but she turns him down, saying that it was only fun for her when they were trying to keep it a secret.