Sometimes the mark of a true professional is knowing when to walk away. Always leave them wanting more; it’s better to burn out than to fade away .
Below are examples of stars who chose to do the unthinkable. Check out these 10+ celebrities who walked away from successful TV shows , as well as bags of many.
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Donald Glover and *Community*.
Many people thought that the reason behind Glover’s departure had something to do with his rap career as Childish Gambino.
In reality, Donald was dealing with a slew of personal problems that were hampering his creative process.
Emmy Rossum from *Shameless*.
It is a mindboggling travesty that Emmy Rossum never received even a single Emmy nomination for her time spent on Shameless .
She was a pillar for the entire series. Emmy’s portrayal of Fiona Gallagher is one of the finest you’re likely to ever see.
Justin Chambers from *Grey’s Anatomy*.
Sixteen years is an incredibly long time to be at any job, and understandably Justin felt that he’d done all he could with Dr. Alex Karev.
At many times over the years, Grey’s Anatomy has struggled, but Justin never did.
Ruby Rose in *Batmwoman*.
Ruby shocked Bat-fans around the world with her sudden and abrupt departure from Batwoman .
She has said that the challenge began to outweigh the satisfaction that she derived from it. We wish her nothing but the best!
Jerry Seinfeld and *Seinfeld*.
What would you do for $5 million ? I’m guessing the answer to that question is “almost anything.”
Not for Jerry Seinfeld, though. He chose to go out on top as opposed to sully the legacy of his beloved series with another season.
David Caruso from *NYPD Blue*.
David left only 4 episodes into the second season of NYPD Blue . It was a disappointing turn of events, but a necessary one in hindsight.
If David hadn’t left, the world might never have known Lt. Horatio Caine .
Christopher Meloni from *Law & Order: Special Victims Unit*.
It always boils down to money, and sadly for Law & Order fans, the network wasn’t prepared to meet Chris’ demands.
He left the series and SVU was never the same again.
Jim Parsons and *The Big Bang Theory*.
The powers that be weren’t prepared to say goodbye to their biggest cash cow. They offered Jim a whopping $50 million contract over two years, but still, he refused.
His decision ultimately led to the final season.
America Ferrera and *Superstore*.
Wow. Talk about your spoiler alerts. I’m currently watching Superstore on Prime Video, and I had no idea that America wasn’t around after season 5.
I don’t know if I even want to keep going…
Charlie Sheen left *Two And A Half Men*.
Charlie Sheen went down in a blaze of glory. His tale of self-destruction is legendary and will live in infamy long after he’s gone.
These days, it appears that Sheen is living a clean lifestyle and seeing things on a more coherent level.
Topher Grace and *That 70s Show*.
At the time, Topher was just beginning to break out into feature films and was looking to pursue his film acting career on a more serious note.
He simply couldn’t meet the scheduling demands of That 70s Show .
Wayne Rogers; *Mash*.
Long before the days of Sheldon and Leonard, or even Joey and Chandler, there was Trapper John and Hawkeye Pierce.
Wayne began feeling that his character had been reduced to sidekick status , and decided to make his exit.
Dave Chapelle and *Chapelle’s Show*.
Everyone knows the fable of how Dave Chapelle turned down $50 million to do another season of Chapelle’s Show and then went into hiding in Africa.
In reality, Dave wasn’t prepared to sign over his creative licensing to a corrupt network.
Michael J. Fox and *Spin City*.
While he was still filming Spin City , Michael J. Fox received the earth-shattering news that he’d been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.
He quit the show so that he could devote 100% of his efforts to finding a cure.
Steve Carrell from *The Office*.
The real-life story of Steve Carell leaving The Office is even more tragic than Michael Scott moving to Colorado.
During a regime change, the network got into a game of chicken with Steve’s people. In the end, they simply didn’t contact him to renew for another season. Michael didn’t leave, they took him away from us!
