Jeff Pinkner Steps Down as Fringe Producer
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In an unexpected move, Jeff Pinkner - who has helped run Fringe along with J.H. Wyman season Season 2 - has stepped down as executive producer, co-creator J.J. Abrams confirms in a statement.
He will not play any role in Fringe Season 5 at all, leaving Wyman in charge and amicably leaving to focus on other projects.
"We're so excited to begin work on a fifth season of Fringe and to be able to deliver the 13 final episodes to our passionate and devoted fans," said Abrams. "For four years, J.H. Wyman and Jeff Pinkner have worked tirelessly as a team to keep all the worlds in order on Fringe.
"We're thankful for the invaluable contributions Jeff has made to the show and of course wish him well and look forward to working together in the future. J.H. Wyman's importance to Fringe cannot be overstated, however, and I'm thrilled that he will continue as showrunner for the concluding chapters of our story. We can't wait for our fans to see what we have in store for them in the wild conclusion of Fringe."
The series kicks off its final run of episodes on Friday, September 28.
It will also appear at Comic-Con next month, where many questions will likely be posed regarding Pinker's departure.
Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.