The Originals loses showrunner Michael Narducci

One key member of The Originals won’t return to New Orleans for a potential season 5.

Showrunner Michael Narducci, who was a veteran of The Vampire Diaries, has left the spin-off show for a two-year deal at ABC Studios, EW has confirmed. TVD and The Originals creator Julie Plec will serve as showrunner if a season 5 is greenlit by The CW, her publicist confirmed to EW.

Since The Originals debuted in 2013, Narducci has executive-produced all 66 episodes and written 17. He produced TVD from 2011 to 2013 and wrote 10 episodes. Narducci has worked with ABC previously, inking a deal to develop and adapt Vertigo comic book Unfollow in November 2015.

As a midseason show, The Originals was not given a season 5 order, but it’s still a possibility. “Julie and I spoke ahead of time about this,” CW President Mark Pedowitz said at the Television Critics Association’s press tour on Sunday. “The Originals has not yet premiered for the season. It’ll probably be a discussion in May. I’m a big Julie Plec fan. I’m hoping The Originals will continue. A lot of it will depend on performance.”

The Originals season 4 premieres on March 17 on The CW.

The Hollywood Reporter first reported the news.