Jeremy Piven Out of "Speed-the-Plow"

Emmy winner Jeremy Piven has bowed out of Broadway's Speed-the-Plow due to having a high mercury count.

E! reports that the Entourage star, who opened the play on Oct. 23 to rave reviews, left the play on the advice of his doctors.

Piven was absent on Tuesday night's performance and Wednesday's matinee. He eventually told producers he wasn't feeling well.

David Mamet, who wrote the play, said to Variety, "I talked to Jeremy on the phone and he told me that he discovered he had a very high level of mercury."

Mamet then joked that Piven was "leaving show business to pursue a career as a thermometer."

The playwright did confirm that Piven's costars, Raul Esparza and Elisabeth Moss, won't be left in the cold. He said, "The good news is that some really great actors will be helping out and stepping in, which to me is a sign of great heroism and friendship."

Speed-the-Plow is playing on Broadway until February.