The actress has confirmed her departure from the CBS series.
Amanda Righetti
Amanda Righetti, who plays the role of special agent Grace Van Pelt, has confirmed she is leaving The Mentalist. The actress said to TVLine, “I feel like the time is probably right. It’s the end of one thing but the beginning of something new.”
Righetti will be exiting alongside onscreen love interest Owain Yeoman (Wayne Rigsby). Their departure is set for the end of this season, but the actress doesn’t know how Grace Van Pelt will leave the CBS drama.
“It keeps changing,” Righetti told TVLine. “It’s been a little bit of a fly-by-the-seat-of-our-pants season. I think it was sort of an unexpected turn for the writers too, to have the show kind of be reworked this season. So everybody’s kind of trying to figure it out. And [they’re] probably keeping it close to the vest so it comes as a surprise to everyone that is watching.”