Katherine Heigl was on an apology campaign last week as news broke that she was leaving the show that made her a star, “Grey’s Anatomy.” In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she took responsibility for several of the mouthy incidents during her time on the show and made it sound like the cast and crew of the show were all her BFFs. But that’s not what US Weekly is reporting- they have a source who says the people Katherine left behind on the ABC drama are breathing a huge sigh of relief and are ready to get back to work.

Don’t let the door hit you on the way out! When Katherine Heigl confirmed March 24 that she was leaving Grey’s Anatomy to focus on 17-month-old daughter Naleigh, “most of the cast and crew were like, ‘Finally!’” a source tells [US Weekly's] Hot Stuff. “There is such a release.”

The actress, 31, who had a rocky six season run in which she publicly bashed the show and feuded with a cast member, has found success at the box office.

“With every movie she’d get worse and start acting like she was the star. They’re such a family and are glad to have this behind them,” says the insider. “I doubt there will be a party to send her off.”

[From US Weekly, print edition, April 12, 2010]

Heigl has tried to make it sound as though she is very close with everyone on set, not just her BFF T.R. Knight. “Ellen [Pompeo] and I text a lot,” she told Entertainment Weekly, but then added that she still hasn’t met Pompeo’s new baby daughter. She also said that she’s been texting Justin Chambers, who played her husband on the show. So, I don’t know: doesn’t sound all that chummy to me. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised is some people on set are humming “Ding Dong, the witch is dead.”

Katherine Heigl, who made a lot of people very pissed of last year by pulling her name from the list of Emmy nominees after deeming the “material” on Grey’s Anatomy not award-worthy, is up for another Emmy. This time the nomination comes after her character may or may not have died after undergoing surgery for a brain tumor.

Ladies and gentlemen, Katherine Heigl has just declared game on!

After a firestorm of controversy erupted around her decision to remove herself from Emmy consideration last go-’round, the Grey’s Anatomy heroine has reentered the gold derby this year, sources confirm to me exclusively.

Natch, cynics will snark that the 2007 Best Supporting Actress winner is back in the race because of the tensions that allegedly sprung up between her and series creator Shonda Rhimes after she took herself out of the running. (The movie starlet, you’ll recall, said at the time that she didn’t have material with which she could compete.) But I think — and I think you’ll agree — it’s likelier that even she knows that, whether viewers loved or loathed the Izzie’s-got-a-brain-tumor story, she played the frak out of it. She’s already earned one high profile endorsement…

“I think she did beautiful work,” Rhimes raved Thursday immediately following the season finale. “I think she always does beautiful work.”

[from Entertainment Weekly]

Katherine Heigl just keeps burning bridges. She was poised to be the next big thing with movies like Knocked Up and 27 Dresses, but she is generally regarded as a diva and no one wants to work with an entitled co-star. She’s now starring with Gerard Butler in The Ugly Truth, but I can’t see her getting much farther in her career with thatr attitude.

Congrats to her on the Emmy nod, but no one is going to be able to talk about this without bringing up her de-nomination last year. What do you think? Does she deserve an Emmy nomination? Or does she deserve to get snubbed?

It’s long been noted that the “Grey’s Anatomy” set must be a horrible place to work. There is such an insane amount of drama going on there. And it’s Hollywood – some drama is to be expected. But when you’ve got the most chaotic and high-strung set on the West Coast, that really says something.

On Tuesday “Grey’s” cast mate James Pickens Jr. confirmed that both T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl are leaving the show. But now executive producer Shonda Rhimes says that’s untrue.

Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes wants to set the record straight: T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl are not leaving the show. “That was a very interesting rumor,” Rhimes said Thursday night at the 40th NAACP Image Awards in Los Angeles. “And it’s not true.”

Rhimes was referring to a recent comment in the press attributed to Grey’s castmember James Pickens Jr., in which he was said to be confirming the departure of Heigl and Knight. “That was absolutely taken out of context,” said Rhimes. “Things happen, and … I think rumors become fact very easily. And you know I don’t like to tell you what’s going to happen on the show – but that is a rumor,” she emphasized.

For his part, Pickens says he meant to wish the pair well in general. “We’ve been living with these rumors for a long time,” he said before the NAACP’s awards show. “When the question was posed to me, I was more trying to congratulate Katie and T.R. on whatever they were going to do. But yeah, I don’t have any special info about it either way.”

[From People]

It’s been rumored for a long time that Katherine Heigl and T.R. Knight have wanted off the show. Knight’s storylines are trivial filler. They are the acting equivalent of busy work. And Heigl’s storylines are just flat out stupid. I’m sorry but the ghost of her ex is following her around for multiple episodes for no reason, and then it turns out she’s sick or something but you don’t care at that point because it’s so dumb.

Even without all the reported drama and negativity on the set, I wouldn’t blame either Knight or Heigl for wanting to leave. Wearing a sandwich board promoting the local hoagie shop would probably be more creatively satisfying at this point.

Here’s Katherine and T.R. in L.A. this past summer. Images thanks to Fame.

T.R. Knight is itching to get out of his “Grey’s Anatomy” contract, according to several sources. The reason, however, is up for debate. Some sources say it’s because he’s still upset over how long it took “Grey’s” producer Shonda Rhimes to publicly chastise Isaiah Washington for his f-word slur against Knight. Others say it’s because his character’s story line sucks – which is very true. He really doesn’t have a story line at this point. According to Entertainment Weekly, Rhimes is likely to let Knight out of his contract.

The revolving door at Grey’s Anatomy has taken another shocking spin. Multiple sources confirm that T.R. Knight has asked to be released from his contract, a request that both ABC and Grey’s show-runner Shonda Rhimes appear poised to grant. “They’re working out the details now,” whispers an ABC insider. (A network rep was unavailable for comment.)

There’s no word on when Knight would make his final appearance, but, contrary to a report on the gossip blog crazydaysandnights.com, he has not walked off the show. “He’s still working,” maintains my Grey’s mole.

Rumors of Knight’s unhappiness at Grey’s date back to the early days of Isaiahgate. Per an insider, the actor was disappointed that it took Rhimes so long to publicly condemn Washington’s use of the F-word, even as his co-stars (Katherine Heigl, Patrick Dempsey, etc.) rallied to his defense. (The incident led Knight to come out as a gay man.) The boss lady eventually released a statement denouncing Washington’s behavior, but word is, it was too little, too late. Nonetheless, my Grey’s source insists Knight does not want out of his contract for that reason, adding, “He just feels it’s time to move on.”

Knight’s probable exit comes at a time when his character, George, has been given little to do, save for express concern over Izzie’s mental state. There’s no word if he’ll be given a big on-screen send-off or be banished to Seattle Grace’s parking garage with fellow gay Dr. Hahn. (I smell a spin-off!)

[From Entertainment Weekly]

The referenced report from website Crazy Days and Nights doesn’t sound like total bull to me. But it does sound like the kind of thing people would want to keep under wraps. They first reported that Knight had walked off the set, and then said he’s barely been participating in the show for most of the season.

So, I got a little more information from my source and they say, “He hasn’t attended table reads since episode 2. He is pissed and miserable and thinks his story line is stupid. He said goodbye to his hair and makeup people last week. He says he is done and has quit. ABC has not released him. Shondra Rhimes, the producer called him and he told her he had nothing to say. He has packed his dressing room.”

[From Crazy Days and Nights]

A rep for ABC has publicly denied that Knight’s leaving the show, but that doesn’t really seem believable at this point. I’m just as inclined to believe the version from Crazy Days and Nights as I am to believe Entertainment Weekly. Both of the stories agree that Knight hates his character’s story line. I can barely manage to watch his scenes because they’re so dull, so I can imagine it’s even more annoying to have to act them out. The writing really has suffered in the last few years – Katherine Heigl withdrew her Emmy nomination because of the lack of quality material she was given. It sounds like everyone is ready to part ways somewhat amicably, and hopefully before there’s any more of that quintessential “Grey’s” off camera drama.

Here’s T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl in L.A. on July 29th. Images thanks to Fame.

Isaiah Washington’s contract on NBC drama “Grey’s Anatomy” was not renewed in June, 2007 after a controversy over a gay epithet he supposedly used on-set against co-star T.R. Knight in October of 2006. Washington later called his dismissal racist and said that he didn’t call Knight the F word, but that he told Patrick Dempsey, who he was involved in physical altercation with at the time, to stop treating him like a “bitch, p*ssy, and a f-t” Other versions of the story have Washington using the word directly referring to Knight, saying “I’m not your f, like [him]”

Washington hasn’t had a lot of work since Grey’s wrapped and was working on another new series, but it was canceled. He is widely thought to have financial problems and has said several times that he would like to return to the show. Instead of sucking it up and playing nice, he couldn’t help but condemn Greys producers for dismissing actress Brooke Smith. Smith was let go last week because she wasn’t working out, according to producers, but rumor had it that the network was not comfortable with the plot involving her gay character’s relationship.

Former Grey’s Anatomy star Isaiah Washington — who was axed from the show in 2007 after spewing a homophobic slur at T.R. Knight — is slamming the show for firing Brooke Smith.


”I looked at a brilliant actress, whom I have adored since I first saw her in Silence of the Lambs,” he says in the Nov. 17 issue of TV Guide. “For her to be treated this way, I find very interesting.”


Grey’s creator Shonda Rhimes released a statement last week insisting that “Brooke Smith was obviously not fired for playing a lesbian …. we did not find that the magic and chemistry with Brooke’s character would sustain in the long run.”


Regardless, Washington says the move was harsh.



“The fact is that, just before the holidays, you have a mother, a wonderful actress removed from a steady income without the proper reasoning behind it…” he says.

“You look at the way another consummate professional [is] being treated because her character, her story line [has] potentially made producers uncomfortable.

“

He says Rhimes is getting the raw deal.



”Now that I see what they’re doing to a show that I love and I care about, I think it’s disgusting,” Washington continues. “The fact that Shonda has been put in this position is extremely unfair.



“It’s unfortunate because it was probably, at the time, the most progressive show on television,” he says. “Now I see it [being] systematically torn apart.”



How can the show be fixed?



”Bring Burke back!” Washington says.



So he would return to the show, despite all the drama? “Absolutely!”

[From US Weekly]

Between Katherine Heigl withdrawing from the Emmy race and saying that Grey’s writers gave her bad material, the on-set feuds, and now Brooke Smith getting fired, it just sounds the show is not a comfortable place to work. It still has a huge viewership and is not going away any time soon. According to Nielsen and TV.com it’s the 9th most watched show on US television.

Brooke Smith is shown on 7/17/08. Isaiah Washington is shown on 10/13/08. Credit: PRPhotos

Just released today is that the lesbian storyline between Dr Callica Torres and Dr Erica Hahn on Grey’s Anatomy is canned, and that Erica will be leaving this week.

Apparently the decision wasn’t made by Grey’s writers but actually by the network, who felt that the lesbian relationship was pushing boundaries. An obviously upset Brooke Smith, who plays Erica, gave an exclusive interview with Michael Ausiello of EW.

AUSIELLO: What the hell happened?!
BROOKE SMITH: I was very excited when they told me that Erica and Callie were going to have this relationship. And I really hoped we were going to show what happens when two women fall in love and that they were going to treat it like any heterosexual couple on TV. And so I was surprised and disappointed when they just suddenly told me that they couldn’t write for my character anymore.

That’s all they said?
Yes. Frankly, it was you that warned me this might happen on the red carpet back in July. You said [sometimes networks get cold feet] with gay relationships. And I was so naive. I’m like, “It’s 2008.” But I’m starting to realize that not everyone feels the way I do.

Did you get the feeling that the story was making people nervous?
No. At work I had no sense of it. And more fans seemed to like it than not. I don’t think I’m ever going to know [why this really happened].

When did you find out?
I found out in mid-September soon after shooting the monologue that aired last week where Erica has the revelation that she’s gay. They even came down and told me it was a great scene — one of the best they ever shot on the show. So I was really, really shocked. I was floored when they told me [I was being let go]. It was the last thing I expected. In fact, when they told me I asked, “When is this happening?” And they said, “The [next episode] is your last,” which is the one that airs this Thursday. So it was very sudden.

Wait a second – your last episode is this Thursday?
Yes.

How are you written out?
I’m not written out. My final scene is just me heading to my car. I honestly don’t know what happens in the next episode. I heard not much.

Entertainment Weekly

I’m at best ambivalent about homosexual storylines, they make such a big deal out of what is only ever another relationship on a show. I’m generation Y, we aren’t shocked by a same-sex kiss anymore. I suspect the network decided to drop it partly because the storyline was a bit lame (Brooke says that she found Callie asking a man for help with her sex life ‘icky’ and unlikely) and partly because rival medical drama House started a lesbian storyline that same week. EW suggests that it is because of the ‘explicit’ nature of the storyline.

Brooke says that she just moved her family to Los Angeles, where the show is filmed, but feels she is going to be ‘okay’ in her career.

Note by Celebitchy: Grey’s creator Shonda Rimes has said that Brooke’s character’s orientation had nothing to do with her dismissal:

For her part, Rhimes said in a statement to ET, “Brooke Smith was obviously not fired for playing a lesbian. Clearly it’s not an issue as we have a lesbian character on the show — Calliope Torres. Sara Ramirez is an incredible comedic and dramatic actress and we wanted to be able to play up her magic. Unfortunately, we did not find that the magic and chemistry with Brooke’s character would sustain in the long run. The impact of the Callie/Erica relationship will be felt and played out in a story for Callie. I believe it belittles the relationship to simply replace Erica with ‘another lesbian.’ If you’ll remember, Cristina mourned the loss of Burke for a full season.”

[From ET]

Doesn’t this show sound like a difficult place to work? There was all this infighting the past two seasons with the Isaiah Washington slur against T.R. Knight and now this woman was fired and isn’t sure why.

The personal lives of the stars of Grey’s Anatomy may be more interesting than last season’s plot lines, at least according to this week’s Star..

McSteamy may be McSeparated

Eric Dane, aka Dr. McSteamy, is having marriage problems with wife Rebecca Gayheart. Star reports Eric has moved out of the couple’s West Hollywood home to stay at Hollywood’s famous Chateau Marmont. The reason is a common one in Hollywood: Jealousy.

“Eric and Rebecca used to love spending time together and were barely apart,” says one insider. “But as Eric’s gotten more famous, Rebecca’s behavior has gotten more erratic. One second, she’s jealous of his success; the next, she’s angry and won’t speak to him. Eric never knew what to expect.”

[From Star, print edition, September 1, 2008]

The two wed in 2004.

Star adds that they’ve also been trying to start a family, adding more pressure to an already stressed relationship.

Besides Grey’s Anatomy, Eric will also star with Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson in Marley & Me. Rebecca’s last TV series Vanished was cancelled after only nine episodes had aired.

Rebecca’s rep told Star that the report saying Eric has moved out is untrue. The rep says both Rebecca and Eric were staying at the Chateau Marmont while work was being done on their home.

Grey’s Gets Green

Eric’s Grey’s co-star Sandra Oh is a vegetarian and is introducing her show’s cast and crew to healthy vegan food. Star reports that on August 1, Sandra spent over $650 for lunch for everyone on set from her favorite Hollywood restaurant, Truly Vegan.

“They couldn’t believe how amazing the food tasted,” a crew member tells Star. “Patrick Dempsey enjoyed the chocolate vegan cake, and Ellen Pompeo has gone to Truly Vegan half a dozen times since trying the food.”

[From Star, print edition, September 1, 2008]

Sharing food like Sandra did is a great way to show people that vegetarian food is more than carrots and lettuce and tastes better than cardboard. Many vegetarians have reputations for lecturing or shaming people about eating meat, but Sandra’s way is more effective. Many people are surprised at how little meat they have to eat to get filling, delicious and healthy meals.

Litter Doesn’t Bug Izzie

On the other end of the both the healthy and earth-friendly spectrums is Katherine Heigl. Katherine’s chain-smoking is well documented, and apparently she’s too young to remember “Give a Hoot, Don’t Pollute.”

According to Star, Katherine had lunch with her mother at P.F. Chang’s in Santa Monica on August 11. After lunch, she tossed her cigarette on the ground right in front of a policeman, then had to sweet-talk her way out of a ticket.

“The officer told Katherine to pick up the butt and throw it away in the trash, 10 feet away,” the source says. “He added that he’d fine her next time he catches her tossing trash on the sidewalk.”

[From Star, print edition, September 1, 2008]

Sandra Oh should send Eric Dane a vegan chocolate cake to cheer him up, and another in thanks to the policeman who busted litterbug Katherine Heigl.

The fifth season of Grey’s Anatomy will premiere September 25 on ABC.

Katherine Heigl is shown smoking after the SAG Awards on 01/28/07. Credit: Fame. Sandra Oh is shown on 9/14/07. Credit: John Cronise / WENN. Rebecca Gayheart and Eric Dane are shown adopting an injured puppy on 8/17/08. Their relationship must be solid if they’re getting a widdle doggie. Credit: Ghost/ Fame Pictures

Katherine Heigl is really starting to feel the backlash following her comments that her last season on Grey’s Anatomy wasn’t worth an Emmy nomination. Which is absolutely true, but the tactful thing to do might have been to keep her mouth shut.

ABC executive Steve McPherson says that Katherine will be on Grey’s Anatomy this year, she isn’t going anywhere. Which might sound like he’d giving her great loyalty for her work on the show, but it probably means she has a contract, her comments are bringing interest in the show.

As for rumors that “Grey’s Anatomy” star Katherine Heigl may be departing the show (after voicing frustration over her character’s story arc last year), McPherson said the thesp is still committed to the series this season.

“It’s unfortunate when there’s any kind of turmoil on a show,” he said. “She’s absolutely staying with the show; there’s an unbelievable storyline for her central to everything going on this season.”

Still, rumors are rampant online that Heigl’s character will be given a brain tumor — which could still mean she’s out the door after next year.

Variety

In another interview, Ugly Betty producer Silvio Horta says that he would have put her in a coma, but Grey’s Anatomy writer Shonda Rhimes spoke in her defense.

Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes said she was “surprised” but “wasn’t insulted” by comments made by Katherine Heigl about her decision to drop out of the Emmy race and added that she has a “really wonderful working relationship” with the outspoken actress.

“We have a really great story worked out for Heigl,” said Rhimes, who participated in a showrunner panel at the TV critics press tour on Thursday along with Lost’s Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof, Ugly Betty’s Silvio Horta, Desperate Housewives’ Marc Cherry, and Brothers & Sisters’ Greg Berlanti. “It was not an insult of the writers per se,” Rhimes went on. “The first half of the season had a very strong storyline with Izzie and George, but it [played] more comedic than most of Katie’s storyline in the past. I wrote the back half light for Katherine so she could do her movie. So I didn’t feel insulted.”

Entertainment Weekly

Shonda, who is the main writer for the show, doesn’t actually say much about Katherine’s long term future on Grey’s Anatomy, but my guess is that Katherine Heigl just knocked herself out of the running for anymore special treatment related to her film schedule. If you ask for more freedom to work on other projects, like lame romantic comedies, then complain that you’re material isn’t good enough, you aren’t like to win friends and influence people.

Following Isaiah Washington’s offer to ‘help’ the Grey’s Anatomy team, he today made a large donation to gay rights fund Equality California. This is after he dropped the other f-word on set which eventually lead to his leaving the show.

Frankly, I think the show is tired. Instead of having it as a medical drama, they should set it in a bathroom, with all the characters gazing into mirrors and whining about their self absorbed problems. At least it would be cheaper to film that way.

—-spoilers follow—-

Instead, and don’t read further is you don’t want to know, the lesbian relationship between Callie and Erica will be expanded. Also, the medical aspect will be expanded, creating more moral and ethical dilemmas for the characters. That should ensure McDreamy and McWhinger never get it together.

Here’s Katherine Heigl outside Hotel Café in Hollywood where she went to watch her husband, Josh Kelly, perform with his band on June 20th. Images thanks to WENN.