ITV Passenger star looks unrecognisable as troubled teen in Hollyoaks role that shot him to fame

THE star of Passenger looks unrecognisable in the Hollyoaks role that shot him to fame 17 years ago.

The brand-new ITV thriller had viewers wondering where they had seen one familiar face before.

Nico Mirallegro plays Kane Jackson in Passenger - but some fans may know he started his acting career in the Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks back in 2007.

His character, Barry Newton aka Newt, was the foster son of Jack and Frankie Osborne, and was introduced as the programme's first emo role.

He played Newt for three years and was involved in notable storylines including schizophrenia, a suicide pact and living in foster care.

Nico then left the soap in 2010 and his character left Hollyoaks for Scotland.

Talking about his time in Hollyoaks, Nico said in an interview: “Hollyoaks is where I learnt a lot of the craft, being in front of a camera six days a week.

"That’s certainly an experience you don’t get in drama school. It invites you to be comfortable in front of the camera.”

Since leaving Hollyoaks, he has gone on to star in My Mad Fat Diary, Our Girl, Ridley and is currently filming for Paramount series Stags.

Nico landed the role of ‘Prof’ in Our Girl, who was the love interest for Coronation Street star Michelle Keegan's character Georgie.

He now stars in Passenger, a six-part series set in the fictional town of Chadder Vale.

The show delves into a close-knit community united by a distrust of outsiders.

The drama follows DI Riya Ajunwa who finds herself bored with the mundane tasks of policing the town.

But when Katie Wells vanishes one night in the forest, Riya sees an opportunity to handle a more compelling case.

Despite Katie's safe return after 24 hours, Riya remains suspicious as Katie refuses to share details of her forest ordeal.

This prompts Riya to investigate further, determined to uncover the truth behind Katie's disappearance and those involved.

Series creator Andy Buchan said: “I’ve always loved shows where the known collides with the unknown… where you see communities faced with something horrifying and inexplicable, where, as a viewer, you’ve nothing in your kit-bag to explain it.

"When I started writing the scripts, I wanted to create something epic and unknown but also bed it somewhere close to home.

"Having grown up in Lancashire it felt like the perfect place for it. We’ll definitely see the residents of Chadder Vale pushed to their limits.”

Passenger in available to watch on ITVX.