Russ started his life in Hollyoaks as a lazy student at HCC, where he met his first love Dannii. Russ was in for a shock when Dannii told him she found a mysterious lump on his testicle during a night of passion. A trip to the clinic confirmed it—Russ had cancer. He soon went in for the operation and was given the all clear, but he struggled to deal with the aftermath and broke up with Dannii. However, after months of awkwardness, they made their way back to each other.

His happiness was shortlived as Russ found out that his new friend, Andy, raped Dannii at a party. Hellbent on revenge, Russ went looking for Andy. When he finally found him tagging a dam with his brother Sam, they had a scuffle, both Andy and Sam fell over the edge, but Russ could only save one of them.

Russ was desperate to win Dannii back, and after Sam told him about her suicide attempt, he finally admitted that he killed Andy!