A shocking exit. When Emily VanCamp left The Resident ahead of the Fox medical drama’s fifth season, it was a huge surprise to fans. However, leading man Matt Czuchry, however, knew all along what was coming.

“I actually knew a while ago. I was one of the first people she had told, and she said she wanted to start a family,” Czurchry, 44, told TVLine after the Tuesday, October 5, episode aired. “I was completely supportive of that and had been, of her, from the beginning, in terms of our partnership and relationship on the show and also as friends.”

The Resident‘s fourth season ended with VanCamp’s Nic Nevin welcoming daughter Gigi with husband Conrad Hawkins (Czuchry) — and didn’t appear to leave the characters in any danger. Season 5, which started in September, picked up nine months later with Nic taking a spa trip, leaving Conrad and Gigi alone for less than two days.

The dad survived his first solo night with his daughter, but he started to get worried when Nic was late to come back home in episode 2. The second hour of the season ended with the police at his doorstep to reveal that his wife was in an accident. Nic officially died due to her injuries in episode 3.

The sudden death left the audience heartbroken, especially since they believed Conrad and Nic were endgame. However, the writers didn’t always intend for Nic to meet an untimely end. Ultimately, it was VanCamp’s decision to leave The Resident.

While Nic was pregnant onscreen, VanCamp, 35, was — unbeknownst to viewers at the time — also expecting her first child with husband Josh Bowman. The Everwood alum kept her pregnancy quiet until announcing the birth of her daughter, Iris, in August.

Shortly after the baby’s arrival, it was reported that VanCamp was leaving the medical drama.

“It’s such a bittersweet moment for me,” VanCamp told Deadline after Nic’s death aired on Tuesday. “I loved doing The Resident so much for the four years I was on it. Oftentimes you hear about someone exiting a show because something bad had happened or there was some bad blood. But in this case, it’s the exact opposite. There’s nothing but love and respect between all of us and this decision was not an easy one for anybody but it was the right one for me, personally. I’m grateful that I was met with understanding and compassion.”

The actress even added that she is “absolutely” willing to come back for a cameo or flashback scene. Though a double was used to play her body in the hospital in episode 3, VanCamp lent her voice to the show for Nic’s final phone call with Conrad. Another appearance isn’t out of the question.

“Never say never,” she teased.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, VanCamp revealed she actually was supposed to be in the first couple episodes of The Resident season 5, but she had to back out due to “personal reasons.”

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She continued, “It was a huge shame because I wanted to and that was the plan all along, so the timing of everything was quite unfortunate. But I’m really so amazed at what they were able to do and grateful that they were able to pull it off as well. Those conversations happened, and of course, I would’ve loved to have gone back but life happened.”

Scroll down for everything we know so far about Nic’s death and VanCamp’s exit on The Resident:

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