Ryan Thomas: Coronation Street star reveals he’s quit acting due to rejections and online criticism

Actor played Jason Grimshaw on the ITV soap for 16 years running

Ryan Thomas, the actor best known for his 16-year stint playing Jason Grimshaw on Coronation Street, has announced he has quit acting.

After leaving the long-running ITV soap in 2016, Thomas went on to appear in a recurring role in Neighbours in 2018, winning a season of Celebrity Big Brother that same year.

Speaking to the Mancs on the Mic podcast, Thomas revealed that he was leaving the industry, having lost enthusiasm for acting.

“It’s so hard for me,” he said. “I started off acting, I started off in that game and I really lost the bug for it. I feel the reason for losing the bug is rejection and going to auditions and not getting them.”

The actor claimed that he had received “negative comments towards me and my acting” on social media during his time on Neighbours.

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“I’ve never had that before because social media wasn’t around,” he added. “I never got it in Corrie because I never had social media when I was in Corrie.

“If I did, it was at the end but I was so established there that people saw me as fixtures and fittings, so I never really got that sort of negative criticism.”

Instead of acting, Thomas is embarking on a new career working at his brother’s restaurant. However, he said that he isn’t ruling out a return to acting years down the line, if his desire returns.