Alan Arkin won't return for final season of 'The Kominsky Method'

Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Alan Arkin, who plays Norman Newlander, the friend and agent of Michael Douglas' Sandy Kominsky on Netflix's The Kominsky Method, will not return for the series third and final season.

Arkin made the decision to leave the show some time ago, but that wasn't made clear in Season 2, sources told Variety.

It's unclear exactly when Arkin's exit was formalized, but it happened sometime before the COVID-19 pandemic began to affect the industry in March, Deadline reported.

His departure from the show will be addressed in the Season 3 storyline.

In the last season, Newlander reunited with an old flame, played by Jane Seymour while Kominsky dealt with health issues and his daughter's new boyfriend, played by Paul Reiser.

Arkin, 86, an Oscar winner for Little Miss Sunshine, earned two Emmy nominations and two Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actor in his first two seasons of the show.

The series first season won a Golden Globe for Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy.

The show created by Chuck Lorre was renewed for a final season in early July.

"The Kominsky Method has been a true passion project for me and it's been an incredible experience to see the warm response from both audiences and critics," Lorre said at the time. "I'm excited to wrap up the story with this final chapter."

Earlier this month, Anna Faris, an actress in another Lorre series, Mom, announced she would be leaving the CBS sitcom before Season 8.