When The Affair's fifth and final season airs, it will be without not one, but two series regulars.
As previously reported, Ruth Wilson is out of the Showtime drama, and someone else is joining her.
According to ET Online, Joshua Jackson will not return as a series regular.
The only silver lining the website offers up is that there's a chance he will return for one episode to wrap up Cole Lockhart's storyline.
What's more, the actor was allegedly supposed to depart following The Affair Season 3 but returned for The Affair Season 4 upon hearing what was in store for his character that season.
If you watch The Affair online, you know that Cole went through the mill on the fourth season of the drama series.
Related: Ruth Wilson: There's a 'Bigger Story' Behind My The Affair Exit
After going on a journey of self-discovery to find out whether there was hope for him and Luisa (Catalina Sandino Moreno), he came to the stunning realization that the only woman for him was Alison (Wilson), but she went missing when he set out to return to Montauk to confess his love to her.
In a truly stunning twist, viewers learned that the character was dead and that Wilson was leaving the Golden Globe-winning role behind.
Wilson's exit stirred up a lot of controversies because fans have not been given a definite reason for it.
In a recent interview with the New York Times, Wilson maintained that it "isn’t about pay parity, and it wasn’t about other jobs,” while claiming, “I’m not really allowed to talk about it.”
Related: The Affair Renewed for Fifth and Final Season
In that same interview, she said "there is a much bigger story" hanging over her departure. As ominous as it may be, it doesn't seem like we're going to get any answers.
When The New York Times approached Showrunner Sarah Treem about the matter, she released the following statement:
We can’t speak for Ruth, but heading into Season 4, everyone agreed the character’s story had run its course.
Ultimately, it felt like the most powerful creative decision would be to end Alison’s arc at the moment when she had finally achieved self-empowerment.
The impact of her loss will be felt as the series concludes next season. We thank the many fans who embraced the character of Alison and especially thank Ruth for her indelible work over the past four seasons.
With two of the four leads gone, it means we're likely looking at a Helen (Maura Tierney), and Noah (Dominic West) fronted final season.
It's certainly a weird way to finish things, especially when you consider the fact we left the two of them at big moments in their lives on The Affair Season 4 Episode 10.
Is the final season even worth it at this stage?
Hit the comments below.
