Jeremy Allen White Talks About ‘Shameless’ Without Emmy Rossum: ‘She’s Never Going To Be Replaced’

The show must go on, even without Emmy Rossum.

As fans know, the actress decided that this season of Shameless would be her final one of the series. For nine seasons of the show, Rossum played the role of Fiona Gallagher, the outspoken matriarch of her Chicago family. And while her presence on the show will definitely be missed, the cast has no choice but to move forward without her in the next season.

Jeremy Allen White, who plays Lip Gallagher on the hit show, recently talked about what it will be like to move forward without Rossum at the Emmys FYC red carpet for Shameless, according to People. And while he knows that she will certainly be missed on the show, he says he’s also looking forward to the challenge of doing something new.

“She’s never going to be replaced; we’re just gonna have to figure out how to work it without her.”

“As sad as I am to lose Emmy as an acting partner, it’s kind of exciting because it’s gonna be a different show; it’ll mix things up,” the actor said. “It’ll be pretty crazy to see how Lip copes without her and how the Gallaghers survive without their matriarch.”

And White was not the only one who had some comments about Rossum’s departure from the hit Showtime series. According to Variety, William H. Macy also commented on his TV daughter’s exit, telling press that while he was completely behind her decision to move on to other things, he and the rest of the cast will definitely miss her.

“Emmy has serious acting chops. You can’t buy ’em, you can’t learn ’em, you’ve got to have ’em. It’s going to be brand new territory without her; who knows where it’s going to go?”

But much to the delight of Emmy fans and Shameless fans alike, Macy says that he doesn’t believe that the show has seen the last of Emmy. According to the actor, Rossum will likely return to the series in some capacity down the road, even if it’s just for a guest appearance. And he joked that if she doesn’t decide to return on her own, he will “drag her by the ear” and make her come back to the show.

This past August, Rossum took to her Facebook account to share with fans that she would be leaving the show, but she was really thankful for the cast that had become like family. She also said that playing the role of Fiona Gallagher was “a gift,” and even though she was leaving the show, she would always be a part of the Gallagher family.