The death of Home and Away‘s Ari Parata has left viewers distraught.
His sudden departure came as a real shock to many fans, who had no idea that actor Rob Kipa-Williams was leaving the show after two years.
The demise was certainly dramatic. But it left many viewers wondering why Home and Away had killed off one of its most popular characters.
How did Home and Away’s Ari die?
It looked to viewers as though Ari was heading to jail for a long time, but there was a big twist still to come.
To protect his stepdaughter Chloe, Ari had confessed to the murder of Matthew, Chloe’s real dad.
Chloe had accidentally killed her dad during an argument, but Ari took the blame for the sake of Chloe and her mum Mia, who Ari was all set to marry.
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However, the story took a shock twist when Ari collapsed while in jail on remand. He was rushed to hospital and initially diagnosed with appendicitis.
However, when Logan operated on Ari, he discovered the terrible truth. Ari had a rare form of cancer, which was terminal.
While there was treatment that could extend his life, it would require major surgery at regular intervals, something Ari didn’t want to consider.
Realising that even with treatment, he didn’t have long left, Ari decided to die on his own terms.
Mia fulfilled Ari’s dying wish, when she organised a death-bed wedding.
He and Mia were married in Ari’s hospital room, before he passed away as his new bride and his family watched on.
Did Rob Kipa-Williams want to leave Home and Away?
Rumours started circulating that Rob was leaving the show last year, when it became clear from his Instagram that he was back in his native New Zealand long-term.
Meanwhile, a post from co-star Sam Frost (Jasmine) revealed the Parata family in funeral clothes, with Ari conspicuous by his absence.
After Ari was sent to jail, the character didn’t appear on screen for several weeks, despite being talked about by other characters several times.
Some viewers wondered if this was the last we’d see of him.
However, there was no official confirmation of Ari’s exit until the death episodes hit Aussie screens in March.
While Rob has paid tribute to the character and the show in an Instagram post after Ari’s death, it was unclear whether it his choice to leave or not.
“Thank you for everything Ariki Wiremu Parata, you taught me a lot. I’m gonna miss you.” he posted after the usual thanks to the cast and crew of the show.
View this post on Instagram
However, the actor had previously expressed dissatisfaction with the way the character of Ari had developed.
Last year in an Insta post he lamented that Ari had lost his “grouchy side”. When a fan replied that they missed that Ari, Rob agreed with them.
There is currently a spate of departures from the show, with Sam Frost (Jasmine) and Harley Bonner (Logan) leaving, and more stars rumoured to be departing.
So, it’s unclear if Rob was let go as part of a bigger show shake-up.
How did the fans react to Ari’s death?
Well, it was a tragic story designed to get viewers weeping into their dinners and it didn’t fail in that!
“This episode broke my heart,” posted one on Rob’s instagram.
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