In 1991, at the tender age of eight, Ryan joined the cast of the long running soap opera "Home & Away." Still living in an eastern suburb of Sydney (Australia), Ryan has an older brother and sister as well as a little sister. Interviewed in 1997 for a behind-the-scenes documentary on the show, Ryan admitted to wanting to be like his brother (a champion surfer), while "Big Bro" himself wanted to be an actor. It wouldn't take long for the former to come true if not the latter. While filming the show, an on-set tutor keeps him away from his hobbies all of which are sports related. These hobbies include playing rugby--even after he broke his ankle, forcing the script writers of "Home & Away" to include his crutches into the show's plot.