Speculation over Mark Wright's TOWIE future
The Only Way Is Essex star Mark Wright is reportedly considering his future on the show after signing with a Hollywood agent, according to the papers. The Sunday Mirror reports that the 24-year-old, who is a regular on the ITV2 hit, has been snapped up by agent John Ferriter, who also represents Ryan Seacrest, Amanda Holden, Cat Deeley and Piers Morgan. And the paper claims that he is considering a move to Los Angeles to further his acting career, rather than appear in the forthcoming third series of the show. "Mark doesn't want to be seen as some reality show boy," a source said. "He wants to forge a proper career for himself and prove people wrong." "He studied at Sylvia Young stage school when he was younger and is by no means thick. He wants to be an actor and be taken seriously - and right now he's not sure whether going back for another series of The Only Way Is Essex is the right move." Insiders also said that Mark turned down a £250,000 offer to appear on Celebrity Big Brother - which his TOWIE co-star Amy Childs is tipped to take part in. "He decided against it," the source added. "He wants to be taken seriously and have longevity." Childs announced last week she was quitting TOWIE after a dispute with producers over her appearing in other reality shows. She has reportedly signed a six-figure deal to star in the forthcoming series of Big Brother on Five.
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Patrick McLennan is a London-based journalist and documentary maker who has worked as a writer, sub-editor, digital editor and TV producer in the UK and New Zealand. His CV includes spells as a news producer at the BBC and TVNZ, as well as web editor for Time Inc UK. He has produced TV news and entertainment features on personalities as diverse as Nick Cave, Tom Hardy, Clive James, Jodie Marsh and Kevin Bacon and he co-produced and directed The Ponds, which has screened in UK cinemas, BBC Four and is currently available on Netflix.
An entertainment writer with a diverse taste in TV and film, he lists Seinfeld, The Sopranos, The Chase, The Thick of It and Detectorists among his favourite shows, but steers well clear of most sci-fi.