(Photo: BBC)
Since 2013, Douglas Henshall has starred in the hit crime drama Shetland as DI Jimmy Pérez. However, the actor has now decided the time is right to move on and pursue new acting opportunities.
The BBC announced today (July 20) that Henshall will depart Shetland at the end of its upcoming seventh season. When the show returns for an eighth season in 2023, it will be with a new lead.
Henshall said in a statement: "After series 5 of Shetland, [writer] David Kane and I decided we wanted to do two more series to complete the story of Jimmy Pérez. So series 6 and 7 were commissioned together to give us time to wrap up Perez's story to a satisfactory end.
"It's been one of the privileges of my career to play Jimmy Perez for almost ten years and to work with so many wonderful people both in front of and behind the camera, and also to spend so much time in Shetland."
Just yesterday, Henshall tweeted an update on the new season, writing: "Shetland series 7 is coming soon. Don’t have a date yet, but it’s coming."
In today's statement announcing Henshall's departure, executive producer Gaynor Holmes said of the actor: "We will miss him enormously but he leaves the show in rude health and we’re extremely excited about the plans we have for bringing more of this much-loved drama to audiences far and wide."
The BBC also confirmed that season eight will start shooting in Spring 2023, with casting "to be announced in the coming months."
Are you caught up on Shetland so far?