Suits star Patrick J. Adams announced this morning that after seven seasons of the legal drama, he’s quitting the show.
After posting a letter to Instagram this morning, the actor, who plays Mike Ross on the series, has spoken out about why he decided to walk away.
“I started thinking about leaving at the end of the first half of season six, after Mike was released from prison,” Patrick told The Hollywood Reporter. “From a story point of view, I was a little unsure of what was left for him to do.”
The 36-year-old will be leaving the show the same time as Prince Harry’s fiancé Meghan Markle, who plays his on-screen fiancé Rachel Zane. Season 8 will continue without them.
Patrick revealed that he began making his decision while the cast were renegotiating contracts.
“Everybody was going full steam ahead and I stopped and said, ‘We need to think about this because this is more of my time and more of my life — and what’s the story left to tell?
“When I looked at the work I was doing, Mike would become a full-fledged, certified, legal-on-paper lawyer. That’s a long way from when we met him and he was this brilliant burnout pothead with no real prospects. I thought we’d come so far and now Mike is going to work to be a lawyer and he’s engaged to the woman of his dreams and he’s got the means and opportunity to do whatever he can imagine.”
Meghan and Patrick are both walking away from the show after seven years.
Patrick believes Mike’s story has reached its end.
“I had this voice in my head that said that we’ve told his story and if he hangs out longer, Mike is just going to be another lawyer on television,” he said. “That didn’t feel right for him.”
Knowing that he and Meghan, who is busy planning her wedding to Prince Harry, were filming their final scenes together, the pair had a ball.
“There was this natural sense that we both knew that the time had come for both of us,” he said.
“It went unspoken and we just enjoyed the hell out of the last few episodes that we got to shoot. We both knew that we wouldn’t be coming back. It made every one of our scenes that much more special. We had a great time.”
So, will Rachel and Mike finally get their dream wedding? Patrick remained tight-lipped about it, but we have a feeling they will.
The actor will be taking a much-needed break after Suits and will likely move ahead with a career behind the camera.
“After seven years on this show, I feel really empowered and capable of taking on more of a leadership role and getting things made,” he said.
