Coronation Street star Sean Wilson was set to return to the cobbles as Martin Platt to pick up where he left off with ex-wife Gail.
Sean, who was last seen on the ITV soap as Martin Platt six years ago has begun filming scenes and was due to appear on the show in October as part of Helen Worth’s much-hyped exit storyline.
However, in a shocking turn of events, ITV representatives confirmed that the actor left the show for ‘personal reasons’ - and now all eyes are on Sean's replacement.
Actor and comedian John Thomson is the current frontrunner to take Sean's place, according to reports from Metro, reprising his role as Jesse Chadwick.
John, who has also appeared in Cold Feet, played children’s entertainer Jesse Chadwick on the soap between 2008 and 2010.
It's not clear yet what his role in the storyline would be.
Meanwhile, ITV bosses haven't confirmed the reason why Sean won't be returning to the show as Martin Platt, though some rumours have swirled around the topic.
A senior soap source told the Mail Online that 'something had been suggested about Sean', explaining: "What is really odd, is that they had started filming most of the scenes, obviously with other cast members and lots of crew on set, and everyone was expecting to shoot more with Sean before he left again as part of the Gail Platt exit storyline.
"So to suddenly be told, 'We’re not continuing and we’re going to re-shoot what we’ve already done with another actor,' without any explanation is extremely unusual – unheard of. If nothing else, the soaps hate wasting time and money – so the situation must be serious enough for them to feel carrying on is untenable – but to not tell the colleagues directly involved what is going on has really got the rumour mill fired up on set.
"It seems to be something has been suggested to bosses about Sean after he'd already had already started. But nobody knows if it is a new thing or something from the past, it’s under total lock and key."
Watch this space for more updates on Sean Wilson's replacement.
Tune in to the next episode of Coronation Street on Friday 23rd August to see what's next for the residents of Weatherfield.
Coronation Street airs hour-long episodes on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 8 pm on ITV — see our TV Guide for full listings.
You can also catch up on episodes on ITVX.
