Paul Opacic
Born
Paul Opacic

1965 or 1966 (age 57–58)[1]
Halifax, England, United Kingdom
OccupationActor
Years active1991–present
Notable workEmmerdale (1996–1999)
Bad Girls (2001–2002)
The Chase (2006–2007)
Hollyoaks (2010–2013, 2018)
Only Fools and Horses

Paul Opacic (born 1966) is a British actor from Halifax, England. Best known for his roles as Carl Costello in Hollyoaks, Steve Marchant in Emmerdale and Mark Waddle in Bad Girls. In 2021, he joined the cast of the ITV soap opera Coronation Street as Stefan Brent.

Career

After appearing in several minor television credits in the early 1990s, including comedies Only Fools and Horses and Birds of a Feather, it was in 1996 that Opacic got his big break when he was cast in Emmerdale as Steve Marchant, a new love interest for Kim Tate. Opacic enjoyed several high-profile storylines in his time on the show,[2] before his character was axed by producer Kieran Roberts in 1999.[3] Opacic's stint in Emmerdale led to later appearances in Heartbeat, Doctors and Peak Practice before he joined ITV prison drama Bad Girls in 2001 at the beginning of its third series playing officer Mark Waddle. Opacic left the series the following year and last appeared at the end of the fourth series. In the ensuing years he appeared in several minor roles in programmes such as Cold Feet, The Bill and Totally Frank. In 2006, he joined the cast of the new BBC drama The Chase in a supporting role[4] and remained with the show until it was cancelled in 2007.[5] Further television credits include The Royal, Holby City and most recently Waterloo Road, in which he portrayed the neglectful father of one of the school pupils Finn Sharkey.

In early 2010, it was stated that Lucy Allan had quit the position of executive producer of Hollyoaks and that Paul Marquess had taken over the role.[6] It was soon announced that Marquess planned to give the soap a "shake up".[7] He cast Opacic in a new central family in the soap opera, stating he would play the role of Carl Costello.[8] He stayed in the soap until 2013, and made a two-episode guest stint in 2018.[9] In 2021, he was cast in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street as villain Stefan Brent.

Opacic is of Croatian and English heritage.[1]

Filmography

YearTitleRoleNotes
1991Only Fools and HorsesJulesSeries 7
19914 PlayBiker1 episode
1991Birds of a FeatherHairdresser1 episode
1992LovejoyAndrew1 episode
1992Screen TwoJeff1 episode
1992Sam SaturdayDC Knights4 episodes
1992The Young Indiana Jones ChroniclesFrench Officer
1992Screen OnePoliceman 1
1993Love HurtsMusician1 episode
1993All in the GameWeeks6 episodes
1994Men of the WorldYoung Man from Top Clothes1 episode
1996–1999EmmerdaleSteve MarchantSeries regular; 256 episodes
1996Element of DoubtTraffic Policeman
1996A Secret SlaveKumari's Solicitor
1999Triple Exposure
2000, 2008DoctorsRick
Simon Amley		2 episodes
2000HeartbeatGraham Rysinski3 episodes
2001Peak PracticeMark Kershaw3 episodes
2001–2002Bad GirlsMark WaddleSeries regular; 19 episodes
2003, 2008Holby CityCarl Jeffries
Kevin Mathers		2 episodes
2003Cold FeetHoward Trigg1 episode
2003The BillNikitsa Severic3 episodes
2004In Denial of MurderDetective
2004Murder in SuburbiaMatt
2004A Thing Called LoveRich Allen1 episode
2005VincentAndrew McCormack1 episode
2005–2006Totally FrankThom5 episodes
2006–2007The ChaseAdrian HubySeries regular; 16 episodes
2007The RoyalGideon Bradley1 episode
2008Sofia's DiarySimon Taylor1 episode
2009SalvageCorporal Simms
2010Waterloo RoadRyan Sharkey2 episodes
2010–2013, 2018HollyoaksCarl CostelloSeries regular; 134 episodes
2010Hollyoaks LaterCarl Costello2 episodes
2017The MoorsideDetective Superintendent Paul Brennan2 episodes
2021Coronation StreetStefan Brent14 episodes

References

  1. 1 2 Davidson, Tamara (12 April 2021). "Coronation Street producers cast ex Emmerdale actor Paul Opacic as latest villain". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  2. ↑ "Emmerdale ratings go with a bang". BBC. 21 October 1998. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  3. ↑ Wright, Matthew (3 September 1998). "Murder on the Farm; Emmerdale trio axed". The Mirror. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  4. ↑ "BBC Press Office – The Chase". BBC. 12 July 2006. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  5. ↑ Dadds, Kimberley (11 July 2007). "Primetime BBC One dramas to be axed". Digital Spy. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  6. ↑ Green, Kris (15 January 2010). "'Hollyoaks' producer Allan quits soap". Digital Spy. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
  7. ↑ Green, Kris (11 February 2010). "New 'Hollyoaks' boss shakes up production". Digital Spy. Retrieved 9 March 2010.
  8. ↑ "Hollyoaks reveals new signings". Holy Soap. Five). 13 April 2010. Archived from the original on 18 April 2010. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  9. ↑ McCreesh, Louise (12 April 2021). "Coronation Street casts former Emmerdale and Hollyoaks star Paul Opacic in new role". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
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