"The Originals" fans saw Rebekah Mikaelson (Claire Holt) leave New Orleans in Episode 16 "Farewell to Storyville" but they were stunned to find out that the Aussie actress was really exiting the show. The 25-year-old blonde beauty opened up on the reason behind her exit as well as the possibility of returning to the successful CW spin-off series.

Claire Holt teased that she finds her absence in "The Originals" to be temporary because she wants to spend more time at home, the Digital Spy reports. At the 2014 PaleyFest event, the Australian actress further clarified the main reason behind her exit revealing that she was not pushed out of the TV series and there were no conflict between the cast members.

"I didn't quit midseason. This was something we discussed form the start. I made a life choice, not a career choice. I made a choice to come home for a while. I realized I hadn't seen people that I loved and cared about for a while. It was so tough for me," Ms Holt shared in the Seattlepi report.

In an interview with BuzzFeed, Claire Holt expressed gratitude for being part of "The Originals" as well as "The Vampire Diaries" that boost up her career in television.The actress further insisted in the report that she had no plan of staying away from home for a long time so she simply looks at her absence in "The Originals" to be only temporary.

In the upcoming "The Originals" episodes, executive producer Julie Plec teased that fans may get a chance to see Rebekah again in flashback scenes. "The opportunity exists for all the family members to return, because they have a thousand years of history," Ms Plec stated.

From there, the executive producer discussed what fans can expect in the remaining Season 1 episodes with Rebekah gone and free from her Original hybrid brother Klaus (Joseph Morgan). "In ending Rebekah's journey, we opened up a lot of room in the final chapter of the season, which is really exploring all these different factions we've introduced along the way - the witches, the werewolves, the humans, Klaus playing all sides, and now Elijah stepping into that leadership role to keep some semblance of peace," Julie Plec explained.

She further added that the people from these different factions all have one thing in mind which is to take over the French Quarter. To do so, every character is expected to "play a dicey game of backstabbing and manipulation that won't end well."

"The Originals" is scheduled to return on April 15, 2014 with the still untitled Episode 18. The brand new episode will air after another long break on Tuesday night at 8/7c on the CW Network.

More Articles to Read:

'The Originals' Spoilers: Promo Video for Episode 18 Revealed, Another Brotherly Conflict Between Elijah and Klaus? [WATCH] - [READ]

'The Originals' Episode 17 'Moon Over Bourbon Street' Recap/Spoilers: Elijah Unites Factions in New Orleans, Klaus Has a Different Plan - [READ]

'The Originals' Episode 16 'Farewell to Storyville' Recap/Spoilers: Goodbye to an Original Vampire - [READ]

RELATED STORIES