Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford exiting ‘Legends of Tomorrow’ as series regulars

There’s about to be two more empty seats on the Waverider. Late Thursday night, Deadline reported that both Brandon Routh and Courtney Ford will depart DC’s Legends of Tomorrow as series regulars.

Routh, who plays Ray Palmer/Atom, has been on the show since the show premiered back in 2016. Meanwhile, Ford, who plays Nora Darhk, was promoted to series regular back in 2018. The decision to have the pair leave the show comes as their storyline is wrapping up.

“Brandon and Courtney have been invaluable members of the Legends family,” executive producers Phil Klemmer, Grianne Godfree and Keto Shimizu said in a statement. “They have always brought a level passion and collaboration to their characters and to the show — both on and off the screen – that we deeply admire and for which we are eternally grateful.”

Routh confirmed the news in an Instagram post, where he thanked the cast and crew as well as the fans for the past five years. Ford took to Twitter to give her thanks and show her appreciation to the network, cast, and crew.

View this post on Instagram

Thank you all for watching Ray’s journey over the past 5 years. I love this character. I love bringing his wit and charm and silliness to life everyday on set. I will miss him immensely, and felt he had more adventures ahead, but unfortunately his storyline is pointed in another direction. I’m saddened to see Ray’s journey end for now. I love my fellow cast and crew, and want you to know how tirelessly they work to bring each episode of this critically acclaimed show to you every week! 👏🏻💪🏼 And thank you to our outstanding team of writers who come up with bonkers ideas that always end up working! Thank you for leaning into my comedic nature—and that of our cast. Our show is better because of it. Thank you to @thecw, @warnerbrostv, & @dccomics for bringing me back into the superhero world once again. And @marcguggenheim & @gberlanti for bringing me onto #ArrowSeason3 (and #Crisis 😉) and starting this whole thing. 🙏🏼🙌🏻 With Gratitude, Brandon ❤️ @deadline story in profile, and also I’m my Story.

A post shared by Brandon Routh (@brandonjrouth) on Aug 22, 2019 at 6:32pm PDT

With Routh and Ford leaving, the speculation begins about who will replace them on the show. With Arrow ending, could some of those characters fill those empty seats on the Waverider? Personally, I’d love to see Black Canary on the show.

What do you think of the news? Let me know in the comments below!

DC’s Legends of Tomorrow returns to The CW in 2020.