EastEnders actress Jasmyn Banks has reportedly left show scriptwriters with a dilemma after announcing she was not returning to the show for court scenes in Janine's forthcoming trial.
According to the Sunday Mirror the actress - who plays Alice Branning in the soap - had been given the option of returning for the trial, despite her contract ending on Christmas Eve.
However she has now told producers she is not returning, with the paper reporting she is heading for Hollywood in a bid to launch her US acting career.
And the decision is likely to lead to script rewrites, since Alice - who has been behind bars accused of Michael Moon's murder - had been set to confront Janine in court after she was arrested for the crime.
"Jasmyn's decision not to return has thrown scriptwriters into a right old spin," a source told the paper.
"While she wasn’t due to have any speaking roles in Janine’s trial scenes, she was meant to be filmed leaving prison and making appearances at court. It seems she has turned her back on having anything more to do with EastEnders though."
A spokesman denied that big changes would need to be made, saying Alice's role had played 'a very minor part in the conclusion of this storyline'.
He added: "We are not going to confirm the details as we don't want to spoil it for the viewers."
The storyline came to a dramatic head over Christmas after Janine's role in Michael's murder was finally revealed to police.
