Marco Grazzini is leaving Virgin River after six seasons to enter a “new chapter” in his career.
The actor, who plays Mike Valenzuela, is departing the Netflix drama after Season 7.
“Character departures are very common in this business—especially on a long-running and beloved series like Virgin River,” Grazzini said in a statement to Deadline. “It’s been a wonderful opportunity to play Mike for six seasons.”
He continued, “I have nothing but love for the cast, crew, and especially the phenomenal fans who make the show so special. I’m excited for this new chapter in my career.”
Deadline broke the story of Grazzini’s departure at the end of Season 7. The actor joined the romantic drama as a recurring character in Season 2 and became a series regular the following season. Grazzini’s Mike Valenzuela was a Marine friend of Martin Henderson’s Jack Sheridan, who works as a police detective.
Season 7 wrapped with Grazzini’s character cozying up to a visiting medical investigator who had confessed her crush on him. Showrunner Patrick Sean Smith teased Mike “will be on the back burner for a little while until we have something we’ve written.”
“We have so many relationships already that I think a little bit of that was just a sort of happy ending for this chapter for Mike to find his way back to Victoria and to explore what happens there,” he added. “But I love Marco and could see his character coming back in a more substantive role if the creative is right.”
Virgin River stars Alexandra Breckenridge as Mel Monroe, who answers an ad to work as a midwife and nurse practitioner in Northern California. Thinking that this small town would be perfect to start a new life, she soon discovers that Virgin River is not as quiet as she expected.
The series premiered in 2019 and also stars Colin Lawrence, Jenny Cooper, Lauren Hammersley, Annette O’Toole, Tim Matheson, Ben Hollingsworth, among many more.
