Emmy Rossum’s on-screen dad is standing by her side. William H. Macy opened up about the actress’s decision to leave Shameless after season 9, saying that he wasn’t actually surprised by her Thursday, August 30, announcement.
“We’ve been expecting it,” Macy, 68, told Entertainment Weekly on Friday, August 31. “I tell you, when you get to season 9 and you think of [whether] to keep going, it’s daunting. It’s hard not to think of: ‘What would my life be post-Shameless?’ And part of it is very frightening and part of it is very exciting.”
“She’s young and I think she’s made the right choice,” Macy said about 31-year-old Rossum. “She’s got another show that she’s an executive producer on, so she’s going right into something and she wants to branch out. Plus, she just got married. I wish her well. I can’t wait to see what she’s going to do next.”
Rossum surprised fans on Thursday announcing in a Facebook post that the next season will be her last. “This business is always an adventure, full of travel and opportunities to tell stories. Usually as an actor, every few months, you travel to a new place, start a new project, build a new character, learn new rhythms, new inside jokes with your crew, make new friends,” she wrote. “Until Shameless came into my life 8 years ago, I led that kind of transient wonderful life of an actor. And I never realized how much I actually craved the kind of continuity that this show has given me. And given all of us in the crew. Season after season I’m amazed that our same crew comes back. And it’s not just because it’s a wonderfully written, wonderfully layered show. There are these real connections, real friendships that bring us back season after season after season.”
She added: “I know you will continue on without me, for now. There is much more Gallagher story to be told. I will always be rooting for my family. Try not to think of me as gone, just think of me as moving down the block.”
Showrunner John Wells also released a statement, stating that the writers are working on the perfect sendoff for Fiona, although she’s always welcome back. “It is always bittersweet when an ensemble member decides to move out of the proverbial house, but our door will always remain open for Fiona to return home for a visit, or to move back in,” Wells said in a statement on Thursday. “I look forward to continuing the stories of this wildly unpredictable family and all of us on Shameless will miss Emmy and her wonderful Fiona.”
Season 9 of Shameless premieres on Showtime Sunday, September 9, at 9 p.m. ET.
