Actor Tony Shalhoub has confirmed that the eighth season of USA’s hit drama “Monk” will be the last.

The actor, who plays an obsessive-compulsive private investigator, is pulling the plug on the show so he can pursue other acting projects and work behind the camera.

Shalhoub says, “It’s a great job, and I work with great people, and I really enjoy doing the character, but I think eight years is enough. I think we’ve kind of explored all the avenues we could possibly cover, and as much as I like the show and working on it, I really do want to think about moving onto whatever the next chapter might be. I think I want to keep acting, but I want to branch out and maybe be a producer on things I’m not acting in.”

Shalhoub was nominated for the Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical Golden Globe Award last night, but lost to Alec Baldwin for “30 Rock”. He won the award in 2003.

He is also nominated for a 2009 Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series.

The cast and crew of “Monk” will begin shooting the eighth and final season in March.