James Argent after failing a drugs test. He attended rehab over Christmas 2014. He returned to "The Only Way Is Essex" in 2015, he has lost weight and is a reformed character of his former self. Since 2010, Argent has been a cast member of the ITV2 reality series "The Only Way Is Essex". He had appeared in series 1 with his girlfriend Lydia Bright, who also appeared in series 2 and is also best friends with fellow "TOWIE" cast member Mark Wright. Finally, Argent opened his own theatre during at the studios in Essex on "TOWIE" Live in December 2012. In
The Only Way Is Essex (series 16) it was announced that cast member Gemma Collins had quit the show having appeared since the second series, however she later returned for the Essexmas special. This was also the final series to feature original cast member Lauren Pope, who quit mid-way through the series, Jess Wright and Ferne McCann who both announced their departures from the show ahead of the seventeenth series. This was also the final series to include Patricia "Nanny Pat" Brooker following her death. A Christmas special of the show aired on 16 December 2015 which featured the brief return of former cast members Gemma Collins,