From about 2012, LaPaglia began accepting work in Australia more frequently. Following major roles in "Underground" (2012) (a biopic about Julian Assange and the comedy "Mental" (2012), LaPaglia had a supporting role in the Neil Armfield's Australian romantic-drama film "Holding the Man", as Bob Caleo. The 2015 film stars Ryan Corr and Craig Stott, with supporting performances from LaPaglia, Guy Pearce and Geoffrey Rush. "Holding the Man" was adapted from Timothy Conigrave's 1995 memoir of the same name. For his role within the film, LaPaglia was nominated for an AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role at the 5th AACTA Awards in 2015. In that year LaPaglia returned to his home city, Adelaide, to star in "A Month of Sundays" as Frank, a miserable real estate agent who finds solace and redemption in a chance friendship with an elderly woman (played by Julia Blake) who reminds him of his mother. In 2016 he appeared in his first Australian TV series: "The Code", a political thriller set against rising geopolitical tensions between the US and China. The following year he starred in the four-part miniseries "Sunshine", set in the western Melbourne suburb of the same name, playing the role of mentor to a promising young Sudanese-Australian soccer player. And in 2018, LaPaglia appeared in the fifth season of the comedy "Rake", based loosely on the life and misadventures of Charles Waterstreet.