Shameless star Emmy Rossum shocked fans on Thursday by announcing she will be leaving the show, whose ninth season will premiere next month.

Rossum, 31, played Fiona Gallagher — the eldest of six siblings — on the Showtime comedy-drama series about a dysfunctional family from Chicago led by an alcoholic patriarch (William H. Macy).

The actress made the announcement in a lengthy Facebook post.

“Until ‘Shameless’ came into my life eight years ago, I led that kind of transient wonderful life of an actor,” Rossum wrote. And I never realized how much I actually craved the kind of continuity that this show has given me.”

She continued: “See, in real life, unlike Fiona, I’m an only child. I never had a big family. Being ensconced in that messy Gallagher family love is something I’d always dreamed of. But even off set, it feels real.”

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The first half of season nine of Shameless will premiere on Sept. 9. The finale will reportedly air in March 2019.

Shortly after Rossum’s post, series showrunner John Wells released his own statement: “Emmy Rossum will forever be part of the Shameless family. She has been integral to the show’s success, from her wonderful portrayal of Fiona to her leadership role on set, as well as directing multiple episodes of the series. We are hard at work now creating a season nine finale for Shameless which we hope will provide a Gallagher-worthy sendoff for Fiona that honors the great work Emmy has done.”

It reportedly remains unknown whether Shameless will be picked up for a tenth season. It is also not known what projects Rossum has in store next.

The Showtime series has earned several Emmy and Golden Globe Award nominations and wins since it started in 2011, although Rossum herself has never been recognized with these types of award nominations for her performance. Only Macy has been nominated. Rossum demanded pay parity with Macy in December 2016. 

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