Craig McLachlan’s Cluedo replacement revealed after social media ‘bullying campaign’ saw star pull out of production

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Craig McLachlan’s replacement in next year’s national tour of Cluedo has been revealed.

The actor and singer had to cancel his return to the stage in September because he was bullied online.

Rhys Muldoon will be playing Colonel Mustard in the stage show based on the 1985 movie, Clue.

The Australian actor has been in several TV shows, including Chances, Big Sky, The Secret Life of Us, and House Husbands.

The cast also includes Genevieve Lemon playing Mrs. Peacock, Rachael Beck as Mrs. White, Octavia Barron Martin as the Cook, and Laurence Boxhall as Mr. Green.

Lib Campbell will play Yvette, David James will be Professor Plum, and Olivia Deeble, known from Home and Away, will star as Miss Scarlet.

After facing criticism from people in the entertainment industry in September, McLachlan decided not to participate in the 2026 tour of ‘Cluedo,’ a play adapted from the well-known board game.

In a video posted to Instagram, McLachlan explained that he was the target of a social media campaign that negatively affected everyone working on the project.

He shared that he, two fellow actors, and people in their circle were all subjected to bullying.

‘The bullying even extends to my partner, Vanessa, and our friends and family,’ he said.

Just before the news was made public, I told them I didn’t want my being cast to cause any problems for the other actors.

The actors I worked with have been repeatedly harassed, and I won’t allow my participation in this show to contribute to that. Because I don’t want good people to be targeted by online bullies, I’ve decided to leave the production.

The play Cluedo was set to be McLachlan’s first stage appearance in eight years. He had been largely excluded from the entertainment industry after accusations of sexual assault and harassment surfaced during performances of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

In 2018, he had to step down from playing Frank-N-Furter after three female colleagues accused him of harassment that occurred while they worked together on the production four years prior.

After a month-long trial in December 2020, he was found not guilty on all 13 counts of assault and indecent assault he faced.

McLachlan has consistently and strongly denied the accusations, and says the experience caused him severe anxiety. He was also worried about returning to public life.

He recently shared that he conquered his anxiety through therapy with a leading Australian psychiatrist, and by playing guitar with country singer Andy Penkow in local pub performances across the country.

McLachlan explained that therapy, both with his psychiatrist and through performing with Penkow, finally allowed him to deal with the anger he’d felt since the initial accusations were made.

The actor, once well-known for his role on the show Neighbours, had worked in Australian entertainment for over thirty years before a scandal ended his career.

After largely staying out of the public eye for a while, McLachlan appeared on the reality show SAS Australia in 2023.

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2025-10-23 10:35