Actor Orpheus Pledger was once a shining Australian talent destined for big things,

but after a string of bad decisions he has found himself on the wrong side of the law

A Home And Away star has had a dramatic fall from grace. Actor Orpheus Pledger,

who played Mason Morgan on Australian soap Home And Away between 2016 and 2019, pleaded guilty to assaulting a woman earlier this year. He was due to be sentenced on July 3, but it has been delayed due to Pledger’s complex needs.

In recent years, he has struggled with his mental health and drug use after he was snubbed from a role that would have seen him break Hollywood. Pledger’s lawyer Jasper MacCuspie said in court this week that he had been in “late stage negotiations” for a role in hit US drama The 100.

But he was handed a “last-minute” rejection. MacCuspie said this was “quite a destabilising event” for Pledger.

Orpheus Pledger pleaded guilty to assaulting a woman earlier this year

Pledger, 31, reportedly started using meth in his mid to late 20s but was never addicted. But it was claimed that he began to use more after he was snubbed by The 100 bosses.

Since then, Pledger displayed more questionable behaviour, seeming to leak his own nudes on social media. In 2021, he shared a video from the shower completely naked, with his penis briefly on show.

Home And Away was Pledger’s last acting credit in 2019. Had he landed a role on The 100, it could’ve seen him move on to huge American roles.

But after leaving Home And Away, his life took a turn. He was charged with possessing half a gram of meth and 30 tablets of Diazepam without a prescription in February 2021.

He was spared a criminal record, had to display good behaviour for six months, donate $150 to the court fund, complete a drug awareness and thank the officer who charged him.

In 2022 he returned to the small screens on SAS: Australia. However he dramatically quit after two episodes, with the cast and crew concerned over his “erratic behaviour”.

It was reported that Pledger was dealing with drug and mental health issues while filming the reality show. This, according to a statement submitted to court, started in February 2021.

Two years later, in March 2024, he was arrested for an assault on a woman and was remanded in custody. He had been due to appear for a bail hearing on April 23 but failed to turn up, having escaped from hospital while waiting a medical assessment.

A warrant for his arrest was issued, and after a two-day manhunt he was arrested and taken into custody. On July 1, he pleaded guilty to causing injury and unlawful assault.

Pledger’s lawyer MacCuspie argued that the actor’s prior run-ins with the law were “irrelevant”. He said that the 94 days of pre-sentence detention was “sufficient if not almost there”, saying Pledger should instead get a community corrections order.

However prosecutors argued that the offence was a “serious incident”, saying it was “not a trivial case of … violence”. But they did accept a community protection order would be appropriate.

Magistrate Justin Foster said time would be needed to assess Pledger, as “at the moment the court doesn’t know if it’s a mental health or drug issue”. According to The Age, this process will take six weeks.

Until then, Pledger must live at home with his father for 90 days and comply with a daily curfew between 11pm to 6am, while also reporting to police once a week. It has been reported that Pledger could face six months in prison when the sentencing does happen.