After one of the most shocking episodes of the season, we have an answer about who walked away from American Idol.

Paige Anne returned during Monday's new episode of the ABC reality series.

Naturally, there were questions.

Did someone drop out? Host Ryan Seacrest confirmed what many expected.

"Recently, one of the Top 26 decided to bow out of the competition, so we turned to the judges' first alternate and gave her the life-changing news," Seacrest said during Monday's telecast.

Unfortunately, the show opted to keep that news under wraps until the hopeful in question revealed the news on social media.

It was Beckett Rex!

The son of A Clockwork Orange actor Malcolm McDowell revealed that the decision to leave the show was his own.

"I'm not going to say why I didn't decide to continue in the competition, but what I will say is that it was my choice," he captioned a photo.

"I am forever grateful to my American Idol family, and I will always look back at the experience with the utmost gratitude and fondness."

"Please go vote for my friends now as they continue on in the competition," he added.

The 19-year-old is the third person to depart the competition, following in the footsteps of Kaya Stewart and Sara Beth Liebe.

It's not uncommon for people to leave the competition, and we won't speculate about why Beckett departed.

We do know that Paige will continue in the competition in his place.

"I said goodbye to Idol and everything, then I got invited back -- everything happens for a reason," Anne explained to this week's guest mentor Noah Cyrus.

What are your thoughts on the news?

Are you surprised?

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Catch the next episode of American Idol on Sunday at 8 p.m.

Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.