When Simmone Jade Mackinnon finished McLeod's Daughters, she never thought her life would be like this.

Simmone Jade Mackinnon was —  and still is, to many — Stevie from the iconic Australian show McLeod's Daughters. You would also likely recognise her from Baywatch. Or from her high-profile relationship with actor Jason Momoa. 

In the '90s, Mackinnon appeared to have it all. Then things changed. Drastically. 

"I was in a really dark place. You're with all these people that you don't know from a bar of soap, and they're all big personalities in acting. Everyone is trying to get their five minutes of fame, they all want to be the alpha. I wasn't prepared for that," she tells Mamamia's podcast MID.

Watch the trailer for Mamamia's podcast MID. Post continues below. 

Although Mackinnon originally had dreams of being a dancer, she thought she might make more money acting. 

"I'd go and do a TV commercial and you're there for two hours and you get $6000. If I'm being truthful, I would say money certainly swayed me into the acting world."

After appearing in a dozen TV commercials, Mackinnon secured herself an agent and began to land minor acting toles. 

Then Baywatch came along when she was in her mid-20s.

"At the time I was lily white, had red hair. My agent said to me, 'You've got to go in for this Baywatch audition.' I mean, everyone's blonde beach babes. Then there was me. But I did the audition. For whatever reason, I got my start because they were looking for something a bit different."

It was 1999 when Mackinnon officially joined the cast and relocated to the US. The perks were immediate.

"I arrived in Hawaii for filming and they gave us a convertible, I was at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and we got into the best parties. People were giving you clothes too. You do get a little bit carried away," Mackinnon says.

She was paid around $3,000 American dollars for her first season on the show. At the time that was big money for her, given the exchange rate, along with the extra benefits mentioned. 

But in 2000 she was fired from the show for refusing to take part in a photoshoot.

Simmone Jade Mackinnon. Image: GTG Entertainment.

"I refused to do a photo shoot that I just didn't think was [appropriate]. I think it was going to be a cover for Maxim. I was told it was lingerie and I'd be on the beach with a bit of girl-on-girl action. I'd already filled my quota of appearances and promos for my contract. I didn't want to be doing any more of those. So I stood my ground," Mackinnon says. 

"So they replied with, 'Okay we're sending you home. You're fired.'"

Mackinnon then returned to Aussie soil where she landed her biggest role yet: 'Stevie Hall' in the popular drama McLeod's Daughters, which aired from 2003 to 2009. 

At this time, Mackinnon was also dating Hollywood movie star Jason Momoa. They had met on the set of Baywatch, and began dating in 1999. They were engaged in 2004, but their relationship ended two years later. 

While Mackinnon was filming a special wedding scene for her character on McLeod's Daughters, in real life she was in the depths of heartbreak.

It's been reported that Momoa was unfaithful after he met his childhood crush, Lisa Bonet in 2005. Momoa and Bonet were romantically connected soon after meeting, and later married (they're now divorced).

"We didn't break up, he left. And he left very, very suddenly. It catapulted me into a world of anxiety that I didn't know existed. It also opened the door to panic attacks," Mackinnon tells MID.

"He flew into Australia to break up with me. We were about to be married, we were talking baby names. He was my world. He left on the Friday. The very first thing I had to do on the Monday was try on my character's wedding dress. I think I just drank myself into a bit of a stupor the entire weekend. Somehow I got through it."

Fast forward to today, and Mackinnon's life looks very different from her Hollywood experience in the early 2000s.

In 2010, she had her son Madigan. Although she and the baby's father were no longer together when she found out she was pregnant, Mackinnon was determined to keep her baby and raise it by herself, with loving support from both families.

"Madigan was born on my 37th birthday. After that I did little stints on TV here and there. But I didn't want to miss the moments. So I removed myself from the acting world," explains Mackinnon.

She and her son Madigan have been living in a caravan and then a shed in her family's back paddock — land she now owns — in mid-northern NSW for the best part of a decade. 

She's been making ends meet with a carer's subsidy for looking after her father, odd jobs like jillaroo (which is working on a sheep or cattle farm), and starting her own small clothing business. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Simmone Jade Mackinnon (@wanderingozzie_)

Mackinnon might be famous but she's not rich, and we often assume those things go together.

"A lot of people think actors in general are on good pay. Once you're done and dusted, yes there are some residuals that trickle feed from your previous shows, especially in the US. But if you haven't worked for as long as I haven't, that money gets used up very quickly," she explains. 

"I'm not a material kind of girl. That's probably come from my parents, we never had money to be like that growing up. I'd still like to have money that can go towards adventures of some sort for Madigan. I mean, he's got a PlayStation, I don't want him to feel like he's getting left behind. But he also knows that you don't need all that."

Recently she stepped back into the spotlight for a reality TV show, The Summit. Her openness about joining the show purely for the life-changing prize money was refreshing for audiences. She won $100,000 in the grand finale. 

"There used to be times when I'd have to go without heat and air con. That's just what I had to do to get by. There was another time when I was like, 'Oh my god, how am I going to afford my medication?' You have to become very resilient, and you have to take the knocks and get back up," says Mackinnon.

"I just want to live the best life that I possibly can while I'm here, and I want to do as much as I possibly can with my son and give him the best start to life."

You can listen to the full conversation on MID now. 

Feature Image: Instagram @wanderingozzie_.

Calling all Australians aged 18+! Complete this survey now to go in the running to win a $50 gift voucher.