The eighth and final season of House was ordered on May 10, 2011. It premiered on October 3, 2011. It was the only season not to feature Lisa Edelstein as Dr. Lisa Cuddy. Olivia Wilde (Dr. Remy "Thirteen" Hadley) also left the show after the third episode in order to further her film career, although she returned at the end of the series. On January 8, 2012, Kevin Reilly (Fox President of Entertainment) stated that Fox had been "avoiding" a decision on the fate of the series, as it was "hard to imagine the network without House" and that the decision on the future of the series would be a "close call". Hugh Laurie's contract on House expired once the eighth season was over, and Laurie confirmed that once House was over, he would be moving on to strictly film roles. On February 8, 2012, in a joint statement issued by Fox and executive producers David Shore, Katie Jacobs, and Hugh Laurie, it was revealed that the season would be the last for House.