Spoilers for season 4 of The Affair ahead.
Ruth Wilson’s character’s tragic death on The Affair has prompted many questions — was it murder or suicide? — but it sounds like the actress’ IRL departure from the show is even more mysterious. In an interview with CBS This Morning, Wilson was asked about her decision to leave the popular Showtime series, and things got awkward.
“I’m not coming back, so [her character Alison is] dead,” Wilson explained.
“The word is that you wanted to leave, is that true?” host Gayle King asked.
“I did want to leave,” the actress confirmed. “But I’m not allowed to talk about why.”
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This, understandably, brings the conversation to a stand-still. However, Wilson disputes that it was about pay parity. She says she never complained about male versus female salaries, and quickly moves the conversation to the response to her character’s death from fans.
Wilson has played the character of Alison, the “other woman” in Noah Solloway’s (Dominic West) marriage, since the series began in 2014. Noah eventually left his wife Helen (Maura Tierney) for Alison, but the series shocked fans this season when it was revealed that her character was killed off in the most recent episodes.
There are many reasons Wilson might need to keep the details of her departure private — perhaps the specifics of it are still ongoing, or it was an agreement in her contract. However, it certainly has caught the attention of Twitter, and in an era when the treatment of women in Hollywood is such an important topic, prompted some speculation.
Deeply uncomfortable moment here when Ruth Wilson says she isn’t ‘allowed’ to talk about why she left The Affair. https://t.co/iyyBobJt9G
— Stephen (@stephen_09) August 16, 2018
Hmm now I wanna know why Ruth Wilson wanted to leave the affair if it wasn’t over pay disparity ?
— Spooch O. (@ALilChankyPanky) August 16, 2018
Ruth Wilson said she wanted to leave + it wasn’t a salary snag so now i’m REALLY curious what’s tea https://t.co/zjksjJDSb2
— 404 Not Found (@messykennny) August 16, 2018
Refinery29 has reached out to both Wilson and Showtime for comment. Watch the full interview below:
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