Emmy Rossum Announces She’s Leaving ‘Shameless’

Emmy Rossum — arguably the leading star of the TV show “Shameless”–  just announced her departure after nine seasons … but didn’t give any clear reason why.

The actress — who plays William H. Macy‘s daughter, Fiona Gallagher, on the Showtime hit series — posted a lengthy statement on Facebook Thursday, saying she was leaving her role after season 9 … which begins airing next month. She’s been on since it first aired in 2011.

Emmy says being part of the crew gave her a sense of family and continuity that she hadn’t experienced as a working actor beforehand, and expresses gratitude for the opportunity to play such a well-known character … adding “the last eight years have been the best of my life.”

Still, she doesn’t offer a clear explanation of why she’s leaving the show — but does say not to think of her as gone … but “just think of me as moving down the block.”

Playing Fiona Gallagher has been one of the great privileges of my life. I’m so happy to continue w my SHAMELESS family!Back to work in May!

— Emmy Rossum (@emmyrossum) December 14, 2016

There was a big controversy a couple years back when Emmy demanded equal pay to Macy — which eventually got resolved privately. She reportedly held up production for the next season before coming to terms with Warner Bros. Television on a new deal.

Unclear if this sudden exit has anything to do with that, but one thing’s for sure … Fiona’s gonna have to get written out somehow if they want the Gallaghers to keep on living in dysfunction.