Kyle Shilling is known for his work on Home and Away, but as it turns out, he is a man of many talents.
The Widjubal man of the Bunjalung Nation is currently competing on Dancing with the Stars.
As it turns out, he is not only an actor – he’s also a musician and dancer.
Read all about him below.
Who does Kyle Shilling play on Home and Away?
Kyle plays Mali Hudson and made history when he joined the cast as the first Indigenous character on the long-running soap.
Since he came on board, he has been working with an Aboriginal consultant and scriptwriters.
He joined Summer Bay in 2023, and his character arrived as a friend of River Boy Dean Thompson.
“It’s important after they’ve had it running for 34, 35 years. Way too long to have an Indigenous person come in as a main role,” he said on the A Bit Rogue podcast when it was first announced.
“I guess it’s been huge, I don’t know, I’ve held it very close to me, considering after so many years, and just having that chance to represent my people on a main TV show, not just nationally, but internationally as well.”
As the show has progressed, Mali has gone on to run the local surf shop and has found love with Abigail Fowler, who is played by Hailey Pinto.
However, while Kyle’s character generally has a good reputation, Mali gets into trouble along the way.
Now, he is also the first Aboriginal contestant competing in Dancing with the Stars.
It is something that he sees not only as a privilege but also as a responsibility.
“It’s very important to me during these times. It gives me the chance to showcase that a lot of the stereotypes and views that people have of us aren’t real,” he said in a June 2025 interview with Chattr.
“The chance to showcase my culture is something unbelievable as well to those people that, you know, won’t be expecting me to. I think it’s just a great thing for the younger generation to look up to as well. To see that they can be proud and should be proud of who we are.”
He joined the Bangarra Dance Theatre and studied at the National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association, where he graduated with a Diploma in Professional Dance Performance.
While he has a dancing background, the show hasn’t been easy for him.
“…I hadn’t done any kind of ballroom, which was actually very difficult to lose or drop all this stuff I’d learned previously to then do ballroom, because you go into muscle memory, and I want to move in a certain way, but I can’t move that way because it’s not the style of dance,” he told Chattr.
Away from music and dance, he raps with the stage name BLACX.
How old is Kyle Shilling from Home and Away?
Kyle was born in November 1994, which makes him 30 years old. Not only that, but he has a twin brother called Jesse!
He grew up in Taree and Pottsville in New South Wales and went to Taree High School.
What health condition does Kyle Shilling have?
In 2023, the musician, actor, and dancer opened up about his alopecia diagnosis.
He decided to speak about it after Home and Away fans complained about his beard.
“For all those Home and Away fans complaining about my beard line,” he began on his Instagram stories at the time.
“Not too long ago, I was diagnosed with alopecia on the beard region, mainly my neck. Alopecia is a hair loss disease that can be caused by stress.
“The makeup team and Home and Away do the best they can to help cover this ‘insecurity’ I now have. It should grow back eventually, but for now it is what it is.”
