'Criminal Minds' Season 11 News: Original Star Explains His Exit
Following the shocking farewell of Derek Morgan in "Criminal Minds," the actor behind the original role recently explained his decision to leave the show.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Shemar Moore shared his true feelings about leaving the show that he worked on for the past 11 years. "It's a weird experience. I just spent 11 years with a group of people, and it's a weird thing to walk away from - but I did it on my terms and in the right way," he said.
He further explained that while "The Young and the Restless" helped him gain the confidence that one needs to prove worthy of being in Hollywood, he said "Criminal Minds" made people understand that he could act and he could tell stories.
The 45-year-old actor said his parents inspired him to make the decision despite the risks. For him, Y&R was "high school" while his latest stint was "college." Now, he is ready to take another step up to grad school where he can someday become like his heroes, George Clooney and Denzel Washington.
Both Clooney and Washington walked out of shows that gave them their big breaks and while he said he has not yet earned the right to be called the second generation of the two award-winning actors, Moore said he won't explore what his career will become if he doesn't take a risky step forward.
For now, Moore said he is just enjoying the time he has with his family. He said he is once again back to his hobbies which include travelling, playing the piano, and learning other languages.
Moore's character walked out of the BAU after his wife, Savannah (Rochelle Aytes) was almost shot while he was busy trying to track the people who abducted and tortured him. Derek's goodbye left many fans hurting but Moore believes that his character had to leave for the best reasons.
"Derek is walking away because there's part of his life that missing," he said.
