Actor Damien Richardson originally played the minor role of a police officer in the unaired City Homicide pilot. But after he proved popular with the test audience, the producers asked him to attend a screen test for the main cast and he won the role of Matt. He told The Age's Bridget McManus, "When I auditioned for the role of Matt, I thought, 'Do I mention the pilot?' because it was a different director but obviously the same project. But they had noticed and a lot of the feedback that was pretty strong was about the other character I had played. That was the difficulty in finding where to pitch Matt Ryan." Richardson said that he received some pressure from the network to keep some elements of his character from the pilot. However, it did not work out as the writing was too different. Richardson admitted that he had not experienced a similar pace of work before, and it gave him a new appreciation for the television serial.
Development
The character was created by the show's co-creators and writers John Hugginson and John Banas. A notable storyline for Matt saw him discover the truth about his mother's disappearance. During the second season, Matt took on a supporting role to the other character's personal problems. In early 2011, Seven Network announced the series would be rested following the six-part mini-series . Richardson believed that the show would not be coming back, saying "it is not like getting a band back together. It is a massive logistical exercise." Richardson also thought No Greater Honour returned to the popular style of the show's early series', which focused on the personal lives of the detectives.
Storylines
Matt's Italian mother, Isabella, disappeared when he was young. Following her disappearance, Matt's father started drinking more often. For a long time, Matt's boss, Stanley Wolfe, was the only colleague who knew about Isabella. Matt becomes attracted to Jennifer Mapplethorpe and they develop a close friendship. In the final episode of season one "Raising the Dead", the case centres around the body of a woman found in a construction park. This is later revealed to be Matt's mother. In the season two episode "Somersaulting Dogs", it is revealed that Matt has a new girlfriend called Emma Treadgold, whom he met at salsa classes. Emma and Matt move in together. The relationship has issues, as highlighted in season 4, episode 4, where Emma and Matt have a fight at his work. This comes directly after the episode before, where he forgot about her dinner party, and stayed back at work instead. He also neglected to call. In season 4, episode 7, Matt states that he delayed taking the sergeant exam for Emma, but now intends to sit the exam as she has left for France.
Reception
McManus stated, "The morally upright Detective Senior Constable Matt Ryan has had his share of dramatic conflict, most notably during the climactic storyline about his murdered mother which concluded season one."
