The 24-year-old Australian star, who used to play Geoff Campbell in Home and Away, said that he felt "stupid" after being at the centre of a sex tape scandal in 2009 when he filmed an intimate act with a teenage fan and showed it on his mobile phone.
After the incident, Lewis received counselling from the Seven Network and decided to work his way out of the scandal. He told National Features: "A few years ago, I thought I'd never work again. I wanted to have my name out there for acting [but] stupid events put me there for the wrong reasons.
"I've always been raised that if you make a mistake then you admit to it. All I wanted to do after that was put my head down and work. I've never been more motivated to work hard - to keep showing that the reason I was there in the first place was the acting."
Since quitting Home and Away two years ago, Lewis has had leading roles in movie Tomorrow When the War Began and the latest series of TV crime drama Underbelly.
He is currently filming a guest stint on Neighbours as Dominic Emmerson, a love interest for Ashleigh Brewer's character Kate. He has described his character as initially "annoying" but with a "cheeky persistence".
> Former 'Home and Away' star Lincoln Lewis: 'Sex scenes are intense'
> Read more Neighbours spoilers and news
Watch the trailer for Tomorrow When the War Began below:
