Curtis Pritchard’s Hollyoaks debut dubbed a ‘car crash’ and ‘more wooden than a fence’

‘This looks like GCSE drama,’ wrote one horrified viewer

A “hypnotic” clip of Love Island star Curtis Pritchard and his brother AJ acting in Hollyoaks has left viewers in stitches.

The pair are both making their acting debuts in the long-running Channel 4 soap. AJ, who was formerly a professional dancer on Strictly Come Dancing, plays Marco, a mysterious young man who first appeared on the show in March.

In his storyline, Marco is recruited as an assistant at a new dance school run by Trish Minniver (Denise Welch). But it appears as if Marco and his brother Jacob, played by Curtis, have murkier plans in store.

In a clip from Curtis’s debut episode, which was broadcast last week and has since gone viral on Twitter, the brothers meet in a children’s park, where they appear to exchange ambiguous threats against Trish.

After Marco informs Jacob that Trish has been left “heartbroken” after a failed engagement, Jacob says the news has “made my day”.

Marco then cackles: “It’ll be nothing compared to what we’ve got planned for her.”

The pair’s acting in the clip, originally posted by Twitter user @JakeCP, was met with horror online.

“This looks like GCSE drama,” wrote one confused viewer. “It’s almost hypnotic,” wrote another.

“What a terrible day to not be blind, deaf and dead,” added another person.

“The next time a producer/casting director says the words ‘but they have a big social media following’... just point them in the direction of this absolute car crash!” wrote actor Gerard McCarthy.

“Omg my fence is less wooden than these two,” summed up another Twitter user.

Curtis and AJ Pritchard on Hollyoaks (Channel 4)

In March 2020, AJ quit Strictly Come Dancing after four years. In a statement, his agent confirmed that AJ had left “to explore opportunities in the presenting world alongside his brother Curtis”. He has since appeared on I’m a Celebrity.

Last month, Curtis apologised after being criticised for making “disgusting” and “misogynistic” jokes in a stand-up comedy routine.