Emmerdale star James Chase has left the soap after two years and is preparing to film his final dramatic scenes.
The 28-year-old actor is best known for his role as Tom King, but it appears his time on the ITV soap is over.
He will be leaving in style later this year, in typical Emmerdale gear, and he will be making a statement.
That’s good news for soap opera dog Piper, after the show was criticised for disgusting scenes in which the shelter dog was abused by vet Tom in a bid to keep his wife Belle Dingle (Eden Taylor-Draper) under control.
A TV source said The sun it was the right time to leave for the actor, adding: ‘James has enjoyed his time on the series and playing such a powerful story, but the truth is that characters like Tom have a shelf life for a reason.
Emmerdale star James Chase has left the soap after two years and is preparing to film his final dramatic scenes (pictured this month)
The 28-year-old actor is best known for his role as Tom King, but it appears his time on the Channel 4 show is over
‘There is no long-term redemption for Tom in sight – he has to go one way or another. And either way it will be dramatic.
‘James is rightly proud of the role he has played in raising awareness of the problem with the story, but it is time to spread his wings.’
James was the fourth actor to play the role, joining the series in 2023. He played the returning Tom King as Belle Dingle’s love interest.
But shortly after convincing Belle (Eden Taylor-Draper) to marry him, his violent behavior came to light.
Earlier this week, fans of the soap warned that Tom’s fate was “sealed” after he made a crucial mistake while tormenting his wife Belle in a dramatic flashback episode.
In the two-hander match, Belle feared for her life as Tom treated her increasingly badly after she discovered he was planning to move them permanently to a remote cottage in Wales without her family’s knowledge.
After Charity and Cain Dingle found the cottage trashed and covered in blood in an episode earlier this week, viewers finally learned the truth about Belle and Tom’s trip on Wednesday.
Since their engagement last year, Tom’s abuse and control of Belle has only increased, despite her hopes that he would change his behavior.
Earlier this week, fans of the soap warned that Tom’s fate was ‘sealed’ after he made a crucial mistake while tormenting his wife Belle (Eden Taylor-Draper)
In the two-hander match, Belle feared for her life as Tom’s appalling treatment of her grew worse after she discovered he was planning to move them permanently to a remote cottage in Wales
After Belle travelled to Wales with their dog Piper, she was terrified to discover that Tom was planning to make a permanent offer on the cottage without her knowledge and that he had already secured a job as a vet.
Tom beat his wife in a rage before locking her in the house. In violent scenes, Belle cut her hand on broken glass, leaving blood on the door.
After Belle hinted that he could kill her, she locked herself in a room. The next morning, while Tom was in the shower, she decided to escape with Piper and locked him in the house.
Tom chased Belle through the fields, but she managed to flag down a passing bus and climbed into the car with Piper.
Now that the driver refuses to let Tom board the bus, viewers claim his doom is sealed. Others have clearly witnessed his aggressive behavior.
Messages to X included: ‘Go that bus driver!!!! She knew! #Emmerdale; Bus driver knew #emmerdale;’
‘I loved that the bus driver knew exactly what was going on #Emmerdale;’
“That bus driver knew what was going on!! Well done, #emmerdale.”
While Emmerdale fans are hoping this is the end of Belle’s ordeal at the hands of her abusive husband, producer Laura Shaw recently revealed that the harrowing storyline will continue until the end of the year.
At a recent press conference, she said: ‘We said from the beginning that we wanted to tell this story as authentically and truthfully as possible.
‘Let’s face it, for people who are victims of domestic violence, this is not something that goes away in a few weeks. It takes a long time and we wanted to be honest about that.
‘I think you can expect this storyline to last until the end of this year.
Star James Chase recently told how proud his parents are of him for scaring the hell out of the Dales as the evil Tom King.
James told The Mirror about his role: ‘[My parents] are very proud of me for getting the part, but like me, they think he’s a complete asshole.
“They look at me and they can’t believe the horrible things he says. No one in their right mind would say what Tom says to Belle. Even though I knew it was going to be about domestic violence, I’m shocked at the extent to which he’s able to do that.”
James then explained how proud he and co-star Eden were to be part of such an important storyline.
She said: ‘We both hope that if this story can give one person the courage to escape something so terrible, that would be wonderful.’
For help and support, please contact the National Domestic Violence Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
Tom chased Belle through the fields, but she managed to flag down a passing bus and climbed aboard with Piper