Superstore fans were rocked with some heavy news recently, as America Ferrera announced her upcoming exit from the series. The NBC comedy will lose one of its biggest stars at the end of Season 5, which may have some saddened despite the show's recent renewal for Season 6. For those feeling a bit down, Lauren Ash has a message to share about the situation, and the show's life post-Amy.
Lauren Ash took to social media not long after the news broke that America Ferrera would be leaving Superstore at the conclusion of Season 5. The actress shared her own personal feelings on the matter, talked about her relationship with her co-star, and offered some hope for anyone feeling sad about it all.
Well, huge day for Superstore. Where to even begin? The cast started this journey as strangers and quickly became family. The idea that one of our family members isn’t going to be around anymore after 5 years, well, that’s tough for me to accept. Cause the thing is, as Dina and Amy’s friendship grew, so did Lauren and America’s. It’s not gonna be the same without her. But, Superstore has always done an amazing job of reflecting real life situations and challenges. And these kinds of things are a part of life. People we love have to move away or move on all the time. And it sucks. And it’s heartbreaking. But it’s a real part of life. And I don’t know of any show better to tackle what that’s like, than ours. America Ferrara I love you. I value every laugh and dance and song break we’ve shared. You’re my family for life. I know you are going to continue to be a force of nature in all you do, both professionally and personally. I can’t wait to see what’s next for you. Like I always tell people, I want to be you when I grow up. Rizzoli and Isles forever, my love.
Lauren Ash had nothing but kind words for America Ferrera, which may speak to the strong bond these actors have forged on set. Ash also has faith in Superstore's ability to move forward, despite the fact the comedy is losing one of its biggest characters.
The Instagram post got a lot of love on the platform, with comments coming in left and right. America Ferrera popped in not long after the post to comment, and left a short and sweet message for Lauren Ash:
I love you forever.
The circumstances behind America Ferrera's exit are unknown, though the actress' public statement did not hint at any tension that led to the exit. Ferrera's Amy is a major part of Superstore, and her relationship with other lead character Jonah (Ben Feldman) has dominated a core part of the story. With 22 episodes total and 5 more to air in Season 5, Superstore presumably has enough time to write off Amy in a satisfying way before Season 5 ends. It is unknown if this exit will come at the cost of Amy's relationship with Jonah.
Superstore creator Justin Spitzer revealed about a year ago there were never any plans in place to break up Amy and Jonah. That was then, however, and perhaps back then Spitzer wasn't envisioning a situation where he would have to say goodbye to one of the two actors. Losing America Ferrera doesn't mean that Jonah can't continue to date Amy off-screen, but obviously, the show will have to dance around the fact that it will not be able to bring Amy into episodes or use her for stories unless Spitzer and crew can manage to get Ferrera back.
Superstore returns to NBC Thursday, March 19 at 8 p.m. ET. As always, continue to stick with CinemaBlend for more news on what's happening with television and movies in 2020 and beyond.
