Harry Hamlin Says Wife Lisa Rinna Made the 'Right Decision' to Leave RHOBH : 'She Elevated the Show'

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Harry Hamlin believes his wife Lisa Rinna made "the right decision" to leave The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

While walking the red carpet of the 80 For Brady premiere at the Palm Springs International Film Festival on Friday night, the actor, 71, opens up to PEOPLE about Rinna's decision to exit the hit Bravo franchise after eight seasons.

"[It was the] correct decision, the right decision to make at this point after eight years," he tells PEOPLE exclusively. "I think she took it as far as she could take it, and she elevated the show."

"Now it's time to move on," he adds. "Eight years is a long time to do anything, the same thing over and over again. It's time to move along."

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RELATED: Harry Hamlin Said Lisa Rinna's Honesty on 'RHOBH' Got Her into 'a Lot of Trouble' Before Her Exit

Rinna, 59, announced in an exclusive statement to PEOPLE on Thursday that she was departing RHOBH after multiple seasons of delivering sassy one-liners, drama-filled moments, social media messiness and self-deprecating lip humor.

"This is the longest job I have held in my 35 year career and I am grateful to everyone at Bravo and all those involved in the series," Rinna said. "It has been a fun eight-year run and I am excited for what is to come!"

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Cindy Ord/Bravo/Getty Lisa Rinna

The decision was made as Rinna's contract expired at the end of last season. After weighing her options and business obligations, she and Bravo mutually decided that she would not return to RHOBH. Rinna joined the franchise in its fifth season, which premiered in 2014.

Looking ahead, Hamlin also tells PEOPLE that he and his wife both have many projects lined up in the future. "We're both very busy. I've got [80 for Brady] and Mayfair Witches coming out, and then she's already talking to studios about getting going on something else, so I think we're going to be really busy over the next few months," he says.

RELATED VIDEO: Lisa Rinna Is 'Grateful' as She Announces Exit from 'The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' After 8 Seasons

Two weeks before Rinna announced her departure from RHOBH, Hamlin told PEOPLE that his longtime love often got in hot water on the series because she was not afraid to speak out.

"She does her job. Her job is to show up on time, interact with the people on the show in an honest and authentic way," he said in this week's issue of PEOPLE.

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"Her hot button issue, I suppose, is injustice or when somebody else is not behaving honestly, she'll call it out," Hamlin added. "And that gets into a lot of trouble. But it also helps the show."

Hamlin also revealed the biggest misconception about his wife — with whom he shares daughters Delilah, 24, and Amelia, 21 — since she joined the cast of RHOBH in 2014. "I've known her for 30 years… She has never once, in all of that time, uttered an untruth," he said. "And something that wasn't absolutely and honestly true."