After three years playing a Home and Away bad boy, Australian actor Tai Hara has drawn on some unlikely inspiration for his latest role.
The former Summer Bay staple stars as an ex-driver turned commentator in sports-romance audiobook The Winning Formula, launched by Amazon streaming service Audible.
"I just tuned into all of my favourite commentators like Bruce McAvaney and Ray Warren," Hara told AAP of his preparation for the project.
"It's nice when people hear you in a different light. You never really want to be pigeonholed for one particular thing."
Romance content has grown exponentially on the Audible platform, including a near-doubling of listeners over the course of 2024.
Hara has done voice work before, but said playing audiobook character Danny Benson presented a new challenge in mastering the skills of sports commentary.
"Not everyone, even if you're an ex-driver or ex-athlete, can step into that world," he said.
While not a die-hard Formula One fan, Hara said he was excited about his role from the moment he read into the character.
"I thought, Danny, Daniel Ricciardo," he said, referring to the Australian former F1 driver.
"I'm a huge fan."
With drama on and off the track, the audiobook suits fans of Formula One documentary Drive to Survive and romance enthusiasts alike.
The Winning Formula, which runs for eight hours, follows a love story between racing engineer Sienna Skye and driver Finn Di Santis.
The latter is voiced by Melbourne actor Ryan Corr, known locally for his performances in celebrated dramas Packed to the Rafters and Underbelly, and internationally in Game of Thrones prequel series House of the Dragon.
He said narration was an interesting psychological exercise, albeit fairly lonely.
"You can sort find yourself talking in a cupboard and going a bit cross-eyed after a while," Corr said.
That was not the case for The Winning Formula, however, with the cast recording together in the studio.
"Being able to bounce off this incredible ensemble cast ... I think it's something that hasn't been heard or seen before," Corr said.
Recording together helped the actor to build chemistry with co-star Maddy MacRae, who found her fame through gathering millions of followers on social media.
"It was a whole other beast and challenge to convey a story entirely through my voice," she said of her audiobook debut.
