Christie Whelan Browne has hit back at online attacks after being announced as Sal Kerrigan in the forthcoming stage adaptation of The Castle.
The award-winning musical theatre performer was named as part of the cast on Tuesday, taking the role of the loving matriarch in the much-loved Australian film. Within a day, she was responding to social media comments questioning her involvement in the production.
Whelan Browne said she should have been able to celebrate the opportunity after years of professional work, but claimed online discussions had been dominated by personal attacks and untrue claims about her.
“Moments like the announcement of The Castle don’t come along every day,” she said.
“After everything that has happened over the past several years, I should be able to feel excited about this opportunity, celebrate my work and share that excitement with the people who have supported me throughout my career.
“Instead, I am watching the comments on these announcements being flooded with personal attacks, with people repeating claims about me that are untrue and suggesting that I am the one who should be removed from a production because I am supposedly incapable of behaving professionally. The irony of that is devastating.”
In 2018, Whelan Browne and several other performers made allegations to police concerning Australian actor Craig McLachlan’s conduct while he was appearing in The Rocky Horror Show in 2014. McLachlan was acquitted of criminal charges relating to those allegations in 2020.
Whelan Browne said she had spent 21 years working in the industry and was tired of her career being overshadowed by an incident she “never wanted to become the defining feature of my life”.
“I have spent 21 years working professionally in this industry. I know what it means to show up, do the work and be accountable for myself,” she said.
“Yet people who don’t know me … feel entitled to define my character and question my place in the very industry I have dedicated so much of my life to.”
She added: “I am tired of having to defend my character when I should be allowed to get on with my career. And I am tired of watching a moment that should be joyful become another reminder.”
Whelan Browne said suggestions that she should ignore the criticism had not lessened its effect.
“I want to be able to celebrate my work without being dragged back into this,” she said. “I want my 21 years in this industry to count for something.”
The post prompted messages of support, with one person telling her she was “the perfect person for the part” and another writing: “You did the correct thing! I am proud of you.”
The Castle will open at Melbourne’s Her Majesty’s Theatre in March 2027.
