Emily Bett Rickards leaving 'Arrow' ahead of final season

Emily Bett Rickards will not be returning for the eighth and final season of superhero TV series "Arrow".

The actor, who plays tech-genius Felicity Smoak on The CW show, announced her exit on Instagram Saturday.

"Felicity and I are a very tight two/But after one through seven/we will be saying goodbye to you. I thank you all for the time we've shared/The elevators we have climbed/The monsters we have faced and scared/And The burgers we have dined/ I will keep her in my heart for always/And I hope that you can too/ Because she would not be alive if it weren't for all of you," Rickards captioned the photo in stills from the show.

The show's frontman Stephen Amell, who plays the Green Arrow, tweeted a season one photo of Rickards as Felicity shortly after she made her announcement.

Executive producers Greg Berlanti and Beth Schwartz confirmed the actor's departure.

"We've had the pleasure of working with Emily since season one and in those past seven years she has brought one of TV's most beloved characters to life.

"And although we're heartbroken to see both Emily and Felicity leave the show, we're completely supportive of Emily and her future endeavours. She will always have a family at 'Arrow'," Berlanti and Schwartz said in a statement to EW.

"Arrow", The CW's long-running superhero drama, is currently in its seventh.