Kane Jenkins

Often known to depict topical and ethical issues of the day, in 2013 Shortland Street producers decided to undergo a storyline that would reflect the high rates of youth suicide in New Zealand. They wrote the role of Kane, the teenage brother of Dayna Jenkins.[1] Reuben Milner auditioned for the role but was instead cast as Kane's best friend Jack.[2] With no prior acting experience, KJ Apa won the role.[3] He had organised an audition through his modelling agency and within weeks had begun filming.[4] Kane debuted on screen on 11 December 2013. Whilst filming the show, Apa also studied at Kings College.[5] Apa had to quit high school rugby to act in the show but was allowed travel between school and the set as part of his contract.[6] In May 2015 speculation arose that Kane would be departing the show when Apa was spotted in Los Angeles.[7] Apa had previously stated he would "wait and see" how long he stayed on the show.[6] The rumours proved to be true with Apa quitting the role after 18 months.[8] Kane made his last appearance on screen on 6 July 2015. Apa was rumoured to return for the show's 25th anniversary in 2017.[9]

Kane arrived to visit his brain dead mother, Jennifer before her life support was turned off. During his visit Kane stayed with the Cooper family, Wendy (Jacqueline Nairn) and Murray (Matthew Chamberlain) and in the new year, agreed to be fostered by them. He began to date Honour Aleni (Sophie McIntosh) and accepted a rugby scholarship to a prestigious private school, only to lose this and get suspended when Murray Cooper (Matthew Chamberlain) became over invested in his schoolwork and started doing it himself. Kane and Honour broke up and after having his life saved by his best friend Toby (Robert Evison), helped him cover up the murder of Brett Franklin (Matt Dwyer). The revelation of the murder saw Kane facing serious charges of covering the crime up which was followed by an injury to his leg, leaving him out of rugby season. Depressed and alone he began to rely on his best friend Jack (Reuben Milner). However Jack mistook this for romance and made a move on Kane, leading to the two falling out and Kane subsequently being bullied when his school friends believed he was gay.

Declining help from his family, Kane decided to commit suicide and attempted to gas himself in the Cooper family car. He was rescued however by his family and finally accepted help for his depression, ultimately reconciling with Jack and returning to rugby. The charges against Kane for his part in Brett's murder were ultimately dropped. Kane was pleased when his father Jimmy (Joel Tobeck) arrived in town and began spending time with him. However it soon appeared as though he was using Kane to store dodgy money for him. However it shockingly turned out he was dating Kane's foster sister Bella (Amelia Reid-Meredith) and impregnanted her. Kane began to excel in rugby and was offered a rugby scholarship to a national rugby academy. However he began to sleep with his PE teacher Ms. Herve (Jazmyne Van Gosliga), putting this at risk. Jimmy and Murray managed to scare Ms. Herve off much to Kane's annoyance but he ultimately decided to pursue the rugby scholarship. Kane departed to Palmerston North to finish his final 2 years of school and play rugby. Before Wendy's life support machine was turned off, she was seen listening to Kane saying his farewell on the phone.

Kane was frequently referred to by media as a "heart throb".[12] Apa was reportedly used to fans "swooning, whispering, and pointing" at him on the streets.[5] The portrayal of the suicide storyline was applauded due to its sensitivity and "confrontational" nature.[12] Some viewers online expressed shock and annoyance at the level of detail to which the suicide was outlined,[14] despite the purposeful attempts to reduce exposure to the actual attempt by producers.[1] The New Zealand Herald columnist Robyn Yousef highly praised the storyline and the portrayal by Apa. She believed it was sensitively carried out and accurately acted. Ultimately she concluded that the storyline would have helped educate New Zealand families and may even have saved young peoples lives.[13] Shortland Street was lauded following the COVID-19 lockdown as an accurate reflection of New Zealand life, with storylines such as Kane's suicide attempt enabling difficult conversations within society.[15] In 2017 stuff.co.nz journalist Fleur Mealing named Kane as the 6th character she most wanted to return for the show's 25th anniversary, citing the need for "young blood" on the show.[16]