Shameless season 11 will begin this Sunday, December 6th. After 11 years, it's almost time to say goodbye to the Gallagher family. Will Emmy Rossum return as Fiona Gallagher for one last go? Fans of the hit Showtime series have been wondering about that ever since the actress left the series after season 9. At the time, Rossum left the door open for a possible return at some point down the line.

In a new interview ahead of the Shameless season 11 premiere, showrunner John Wells spoke about what fans can expect from the Gallaghers this time around. He was also asked again about a possible cameo from Emmy Rossum's Fiona, who left the show in 2019. In early 2020, Wells said he was going to talk to her about returning, though he noted that the actress was extremely busy. Wells had this to say about Rossum returning for season 11.

"Yeah, sadly, I'm not being coy at all. Emmy is doing Angelyne, a show for Peacock, and they had to shut down in the middle of it and they're not sure when they're going to go back. She and I have talked, and I think she would like to come back for a brief something. Whether or not that will be possible given what our shooting schedule is and what her shooting schedule is and where she's going to be in the country, I have no idea. Again, not trying to be clever about it or anything. It will be based on circumstances when we're ready to shoot, whether or not she'd be able to. But would love her to, I think she would like to, not sure it will be possible."

It appears that the public health crisis may be the main reason that Emmy Rossum might not appear in Shameless season 11. Between her new schedule and trying to plan traveling, Rossum might not be able to get back to the Southside of Chicago to rejoin the Gallagher family. Whatever the case may be, it sounds like she and Wells are at least communicating about a cameo.

In 2019, Emmy Rossum announced that she was leaving Shameless. Fans were worried about how the show would work without one of its main characters, but, so far, it seems that the fans have been satisfied. When asked about returning, she said, "I would never close my door on the family. Like I said in what I wrote and what I said to them repeatedly, they should just think of me being down the block. I'm just in New York. It's not like I'll never be in L.A. or Chicago ever again, so I'm not that far away."

As for whether or not Fiona coming back would be a benefit to the overall storyline, Emmy Rossum is unsure. "But for me, quite honestly, I'm not sure what more story can be told for her. I really liked the way we ended it," she said. "But never say never; I really love all the people I work with. There's so many other things that I want to do but I love my family." Shameless season 11 premieres this weekend, exclusively on Showtime. You can read the rest of the interview with John Wells over at Entertainment Weekly.