‘Suits’: Patrick J. Adams, Meghan Markle Not Returning For Potential Season 8?

Patrick J. Adams and Meghan Markle may not return for a potential Season 8 of “Suits.”

Sources told The Hollywood Reporter that Adams and Markle are both eyeing to exit the legal drama after Season 7 as USA Network is nearing a deal to renew the series for another season.

Adams, who plays fake lawyer-turned-real lawyer Mike Ross on the series, is reportedly looking to pursue other creative avenues beyond “Suits.” Sources said that should the 36-year-old actor depart from the show as a series regular at the end of the current season, the door will remain open for him to recur or guest-star in Season 8. Adams, who has directed four episodes of the series, may also return as a director next season.

Markle, meanwhile, has been rumored to leave the series since it was revealed that she’s dating Prince Harry in 2016. The 36-year-old actress portrays Rachel Zane on the show, and because the paralegal-turned-lawyer is engaged to Adams’ Mike, an exit of Markle alongside Adams would seem sensible.

The network and reps for both Adams and Markle declined to comment on the report, but a source told Entertainment Weekly that discussions are still ongoing, so nothing is final yet. But if Adams and Markle end up leaving, original series regulars Gabriel Macht (Harvey Specter), Sarah Rafferty (Donna Paulsen), and Rick Hoffman (Louis Litt) are expected to headline the series in Season 8.

Series creator Aaron Korsh has yet to comment on Adams and Markle’s potential exit, but Korsh previously acknowledged that seeing actors exit a long-running series is not new.

“They all have things going on in their lives, we’ll see what happens,” Korsh told Deadline last September when asked if all the remaining series regulars will return for a potential Season 8. “This is true on all long-running shows, and people have things happening in their lives. When Gina [Torres] left, I could not have predicted that the way her life was going. She loved being on the show, and we loved having her on the show, that’s why we’re doing the spinoff. I would never have guessed that she would want to leave early but she did, and it ended up working out. Even though she left early, look at how often we still see Jessica [Pearson] throughout Season 6 and 7. I’m going to let what happens happens and hope it all works out.”

“Suits” is set to return for its last six Season 7 episodes in January.