Wentworth (season 8)

The eighth season of Australian television drama series Wentworth, titled Wentworth: Redemption, premiered on Fox Showcase on 28 July 2020.[1][2] The twenty-episode final season[3][4] has been divided into two parts with the first airing in 2020[4] and the second in 2021.[4] The story picks up sometime following the siege at the end of the previous season where the prisoners and staff struggle to rebuild their lives as they struggle to cope in the aftermath. In season 8 Joan Ferguson returns, and it is explained how she escaped death after being buried alive by Will Jackson.

Wentworth
Season 8
Region 4 DVD cover
Starring
Country of originAustralia
No. of episodes10
Release
Original networkFox Showcase
Original release28 July 2020 (2020-07-28) –
Present
Season chronology

This season introduced four new main characters: Ann Reynolds (Jane Hall), Lou Kelly (Kate Box), Judy Bryant (Vivienne Awosoga), Reb Keane (Zoe Terakes), and special guest star Marta Dusseldorp as Sheila Bausch. The second part of the season will introduce Tina Bursill as Eve Wilder.

Cast
Main article: List of Wentworth characters

Episodes
See also: List of Wentworth episodes
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateAus. viewers
Part 1
811"Resurrection"Kevin CarlinPete McTighe28 July 2020 (2020-07-28)107,000[5]
Lou Kelly, a former top dog of Wentworth, and her transgender boyfriend Reb Keane arrive at the prison after an armed robbery. Marie is removed from isolation and placed in the protection unit; there she offers to pay for Reb’s sex reassignment surgery if Reb kills Ruby. New General Manager Ann Reynolds takes the helm following the siege with the intention of removing Will from the service. Vera is reluctant to return to work after the birth of her daughter Grace; however, she is tempted when she is offered a position she cannot refuse and on the condition that Will remains as governor. Rita remains in police protection pending her charges and is desperate to make contact with Ruby. Later, she learns that Attorney General Heston, Marie’s former protector, has been found dead. After Boomer insults Reb, Lou viciously attacks Boomer which prompts Top Dog Allie to remove one of Lou's fingers. Joan, now living on government welfare under the pseudonym Kath Maxwell, puts her plan for revenge into action and has set her sights on abducting Grace.
822"Ends and Means"Kevin CarlinMax Conroy & Kim Wilson4 August 2020 (2020-08-04)78,000[6]
Lou returns from the hospital unit with her finger reattached, while she and Reb hatch a scheme to raise money for his sex reassignment surgery. Ann persuades Vera to let her hair down and she agrees to let Jake babysit Grace while they go to bar. Marie discovers that she may serve a life sentence in light of Heston's death and threatens to expose her affair with Will if she is not moved into general; she then decides to sabotage Ruby's plans for parole by informing the police of Danny's murder. Honouring his promise to Rita, Will covers for Ruby at the last minute and the charges are dropped. Marie, having failed in avenging Danny's murder, attempts suicide but is rescued by Will. Joan's plans to abduct Grace are thwarted by a homeless man who knows she is not Kath Maxwell and attacks her, leaving her for dead.
833"Enemy of the State"Beck ColeMarcia Gardner11 August 2020 (2020-08-11)73,000[7]
Following her suicide attempt, Marie begins to suffer from nightmares and suspects that she has had a near-death experience, which Greg believes to be the medication she is taking; however, when Marie has a vision of Danny, she suddenly makes peace with herself over the guilt of his death and the failures in her life while making the decision to retract her statement about Ruby. Reb becomes frantic when he begins to withdraw from his HRT medication and makes a request to Will, which is granted, only to be overruled by Ann, forcing Lou to take desperate measures in order to keep up a regular supply. Reb injects himself with a black market medication and goes into anaphylactic shock. Ruby receives a visit from her father who informs her that he is dying of cancer and that he wishes to make contact with Rita before it's too late. Judy Bryant, a British hacker suspected of terrorism, arrives at Wentworth and immediately clashes with those in charge, and persuades Allie to take a stance against prison conditions, forcing the women to go on hunger strike; When false evidence is presented, Judy realises that Ann has set her up.
844"Revenant"Beck ColeJohn Ridley18 August 2020 (2020-08-18)59,000[8]
Joan remains in a comatose state and it is revealed that ever since the DNA testing of the body in the grave (the real Kath Maxwell), the police have known all along that she had not died, confirming that she escaped with the help of prison officer Brenda Murphy. Ann announces that the protection unit is to be closed permanently and the prisoners are moved to general. Vera grants Judy permission to call her father in London, without Ann's knowledge. Lou decides to kill Ruby for the money to pay for Reb's operation unaware that the offer no longer stands; when Marie steps in to save Ruby, it is thought that she was attempting to kill her, leading Allie to assault Marie. Ann offers Lou a proposition which involves forming a crew and becoming her secret informant in exchange for resuming Reb's gender transition. Jake plans to kill Joan, fearing that she will come for Vera and Grace, however, she suddenly awakens from her coma. Convinced that they will be charged with attempted murder, Vera, Will and Jake go to the hospital and are surprised to find that Joan has apparently entered a fugue state, claiming to be Kath Maxwell.
855"Fallout"Fiona BanksPete McTighe25 August 2020 (2020-08-25)65,000[9]
In a desperate attempt to make contact with Rita, Judy agrees to help Ruby by hacking into government information and finding the address of where she is hiding. The women lose all privileges when Boomer plays a prank during a presentation. Lou forces Boomer to confess by threatening to cut off her finger, for which Boomer blames Judy. Lou informs Ann and Judy is placed in the slot where she is pepper sprayed by Linda, prompting Vera to clash with Ann over the mistreatment of a prisoner. Allie's plan to take down Lou is thwarted when she becomes outnumbered by Lou’s crew. Ann reveals the ordeal of her daughter's death due to a terrorist attack in the UK, which fuels her hatred towards Judy. Will tells Allie that Joan will be transferred interstate, however it is later announced that she will be returning to Wentworth under orders from the Minister. Ruby is out on day release and goes to see Rita where she shares of the news of their dying father; following the visit, Rita receives a phone call from her former undercover agents and is informed that if she does not retract her statement to the police, her sister will die.
866"Fugitive"Fiona BanksMarcia Gardner1 September 2020 (2020-09-01)56,000[10]
Reb is almost sexually assaulted by Cynthia when Marie interrupts and fights her off. Marie and Reb begin to bond, all the while Reb is keeping secrets from Lou. Will discovers that Ann initially intended to replace him as governor and that Vera knew all along hence her return to work. Wentworth prepares for Joan's return; however all are not convinced that she has lost her memory, yet Jake begins to wonder if she is in fact genuine. Allie tortures Marie for information on Ruby's disappearance, unbeknownst to her that Marie has nothing to do with it. Rita makes a desperate bid to rescue her sister when she tracks down her captors, shooting Morelli dead while Jones manages to get away; Rita persuades Ruby to turn herself in as Rita decides to go on the run. When Allie learns that Ruby has been located, she releases Marie and later breaks down, horrified at her own vicious behaviour.
877"Battle Lines"Corrie ChenMax Conroy & Kim Wilson8 September 2020 (2020-09-08)62,000[11]
Ruby arrives back at the prison to face an angry Allie. Ann announces that Joan is to be moved into general, forcing Will to consider resigning as governor. Joan is taken under Lou's wing under Ann's instructions if Reb is to continue his HRT treatment. Allie confronts Joan and reminds her of all her past crimes at Wentworth, causing Joan to scream out in anguish. Allie confides in Boomer and admits that she is slowly losing control. Judy is informed that she is to be extradited to the United States; growing frantic, she tries to contact her father but to no avail. When it is discovered that Lou has been slipping notes to Linda, Judy decides to slip a message of her own, fooling Linda into thinking it's from Lou. She is then granted a supervised call to her father, for which he dismisses her. Ann goes to the kitchen where she is attacked by Judy.
888"Goldfish, Part 2"Corrie ChenJohn Ridley15 September 2020 (2020-09-15)54,000[12]
Wentworth is in lockdown following Ann's attack while Allie's position as Top Dog is put to the test. Reb's request for top surgery is granted and he is required to undergo therapy, something which evokes a painful memory forcing him to lash out at Greg; worried that he has sabotaged his change, Lou promises to "fix" things and forces Joan to poison Greg. Joan begins to have hallucinations of a young girl and decides to withdraw from her therapy sessions fearing that she will remember who she once was. As the prison remains in lockdown, Judy tells Allie that it was Lou who attacked Ann just as Lou incites a riot. Having no other option, Allie is forced to lag to Will so that all privileges are reinstated, putting an end to the riot. Ruby finally gets in touch with Rita. Marie and Reb grow closer.
899"Monster"Kevin CarlinJohn Ridley22 September 2020 (2020-09-22)46,000[13]
Reb is horrified when new remand prisoner Sheila Bausch arrives at Wentworth on charges of murder. Her backstory reveals that she was affiliated with the clinic where Lou and Reb resided, bringing up more painful memories for Reb during a therapy session. Judy's stress of being in prison finally gets the better of her as she takes LSD and loses control. Ann returns to work and is informed that it was Lou who attacked her; much to her doubt, she later tells Lou that it was Allie who lagged on her. Joan's committal hearing is imminent and Vera enlists the help of Allie to catch Joan out before she goes to trial. Allie drugs Joan with LSD in the hope of forcing out a confession; Joan takes a bad trip and continues to see a young girl with blood on her hands. When Linda knocks her unconscious she is suspended from duty. As Joan recovers in the hospital unit, the girl appears one last time and utters the words "I love you, Mummy". Lou returns from the slot and confronts Sheila and there it is discovered that Lou has been keeping a secret of her own from Reb. Lou decides to take revenge on Allie for lagging.
9010"The Enemy Within"Kevin CarlinMarcia Gardner29 September 2020 (2020-09-29)65,000[14]
Lou discovers that her phone is missing and that the money they had accumulated for Reb's top surgery has been stolen. Based on misinformation, Lou is led to believe that Allie stole her phone and the money. Lou brutally bashes Allie but Marie saves her life by pressing the panic button. Lou and her associates also accost Joan, killing her pet fish and causing her to experience flashbacks of her troubled childhood and the murder of her mother at the hands of her father and it is revealed that the little girl was in fact Joan. Meanwhile, Boomer meets with her telephone friend and discovers that he knew she was a prisoner all along and that he runs a prison porn website, which Boomer attempts to recruit Ruby to help her with. Despite pressure from Vera, Dr. Greg Miller testifies in court that Joan Ferguson is suffering from traumatic brain damage. Sheila tries to drive a wedge between Lou and Reb by revealing that Lou was a bystander in the doctor's sexual assaults on patients. Judy confesses to attacking General Manager Ann, angering Allie. Judy later stabs Allie in the shower, seriously wounding her. It is revealed that Judy stole Reb's surgery money and used it to hire an assassin to assassinate the visiting United States Secretary of State, who is seeking her extradition. With Vera's approval, Linda places Joan in a spit hood, causing Joan to experience a psychotic breakdown and get her memory back.

Production

Season eight of Wentworth went into production in October 2019. It consists of twenty episodes ,[3][4][15][16] titled "Redemption", and featured the first ten episodes in 2020, while the final episodes will broadcast in 2021.[4]

Brian Walsh, Foxtel Executive Director of Television commented that "Wentworth has been the shining star of Foxtel’s extensive slate of Australian dramas and we are very proud to call “action” on the new season. We are indebted to the remarkable creative talent involved and to showcase the outstanding line-up of actors who bring to life this compelling series."[16]

Kate Box joined the cast as Lou Kelly, a former top dog of Wentworth Correctional Facility who often uses a violent approach to get what she wants, along with Jane Hall as Ann Reynolds, a General Manager of extreme authority, taking control of the prison following the siege, and Zoe Terakes as transgender character Reb Keane, a meek and shy prisoner and love interest for Lou.[16][17] It was later announced that actress Vivienne Awosoga would be joining the cast as Judy Bryant. The characters originally appeared in Prisoner[18] in which Lou Kelly was played by Louise Siversen, Ann Reynolds by Gerda Nicolson, Reb Keane by Janet Andrewartha and Judy Bryant by Betty Bobbitt. In June 2020, it was announced that Marta Dusseldorp would join the cast as Sheila Bausch, a cult member accused of mass murder, theft and arson.[19] It was announced in late 2020 that Tina Bursill had been cast as Eve Wilder and is set to appear in the final part of the eighth season in 2021; the character was originally portrayed by Lynda Stoner in Prisoner.[20]

The season premiered in Australia on Fox Showcase on 28 July 2020.[1][2] and on August 5 on 5STAR in the UK.[21] In New Zealand, the season is distributed on TVNZ's TVNZ 2 and TVNZ OnDemand streaming service.[22][23]

Reception

Ratings
No. Title Air date Overnight ratings Ref(s)
ViewersRank
1 "Resurrection" 28 July 2020 107,0001 [5]
2 "Ends and Means" 4 August 2020 78,0003 [6]
3 "Enemy of the State" 11 August 2020 73,0005 [7]
4 "Revenant" 18 August 2020 59,0006 [8]
5 "Fallout" 25 August 2020 65,0005 [9]
6 "Fugitive" 1 September 2020 56,0006 [10]
7 "Battle Lines" 8 September 2020 62,0007 [11]
8 "Goldfish, Part 2" 15 September 2020 54,0005 [12]
9 "Monster" 22 September 2020 46,0005 [13]
10 "The Enemy Within" 29 September 2020 65,0004 [14]

Home media
Title Release Country Availability Region Ref(s)
DVD Blu-ray
Wentworth: Season 8, Part 1: Redemption
25 November 2020
  Australia
4/B
[24][25]
Wentworth Prison: Season Eight, Part One
23 November 2020
  UK
2/B
[26][27]
Additional


Distributor

Set details

Audio

  • Dolby Digital 5.1 (DVD)
  • DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (Blu-ray)

Subtitles

  • TBA

Discs

  • 3-DVD set (region 2 UK & region 4 Australia)
  • 2-Blu-ray set (region B UK & region B Australia)

Rating

References
  1. Knox, David (18 March 2020). "Australian prison drama Wentworth suspends filming amid the coronavirus pandemic... but fans can expect new episodes in June this year". tvtonight.com.au. Retrieved 22 March 2020.
  2. "Wentworth season 8 comes to Foxtel on July 28". Mediaweek. 26 May 2020. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
  3. "WENTWORTH SET TO RETURN FOR SEASON 8". film.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  4. "Wentworth: Everything You Need to Know about season 8". mediaweek.com.au. 27 July 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  5. Knox, David (30 July 2020). "Tuesday 28 July 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  6. Knox, David (5 August 2020). "Tuesday 4 August 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
  7. Knox, David (12 August 2020). "Tuesday 11 August 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 12 August 2020.
  8. Knox, David (19 August 2020). "Tuesday 18 August 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  9. Knox, David (26 August 2020). "Tuesday 25 August 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
  10. Knox, David (2 September 2020). "Tuesday 1 September 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  11. Knox, David (9 September 2020). "Tuesday 8 September 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
  12. Knox, David (16 September 2020). "Tuesday 15 September 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  13. Knox, David (22 September 2020). "Tuesday 22 September 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
  14. Knox, David (30 September 2020). "Tuesday 29 September 2020". TV Tonight. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  15. "Wentworth Series 8 (2020)". Screenaustralia.gov.au. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  16. "HERITAGE CHARACTERS JOIN SIEGE SURVIVORS ON THE INSIDE AS WENTWORTH SEASON 8 COMMENCES PRODUCTION". foxshowcase.com.au. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  17. "Wentworth Season 8 release date, Get the latest updates including cast in details". Devdiscourse.com. 6 January 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  18. Hill, Leigh Andrew (25 October 2019). "'Wentworth' pays homage to 'Prisoner' with upcoming eighth season". Outinperth.org. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  19. "Wentworth: Marta Dusseldorp joins Foxtel TV show". dailytelegraph.com.au. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  20. "Tina Bursill will be joining the cast of Wentworth as Eve Wilder". Twitter. 17 November 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  21. "Wentworth Season 8 - UK Release Date Revealed". wentworth-prison.co.uk. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
  22. Nealon, Sarah (16 July 2020). "It's OK Boomer as Wentworth returns". Stuff. Archived from the original on 27 July 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  23. Brooks, Sam (22 August 2020). "What has New Zealand been streaming through lockdown 2.0?". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  24. "Wentworth - Season 8 (DVD)". Sanity.com.au. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  25. "Wentworth - Season 8 (Blu-ray)". Sanity.com.au. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  26. "Wentworth Prison: Season Eight Part One [DVD]". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  27. "Wentworth Prison: Season 8 Part 1 Blu-ray". Blu-ray.com. 24 August 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  28. "WENTWORTH: SEASON 8". Classification.gov.au. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
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