The medical drama Grey’s Anatomy has been running for two decades now and has brought several heartbreaking and warming stories to the screen. While the long-running drama has a cast that has become family at this point, it also has several dark moments where cast and crew members were called out for their problematic behaviours.
One of the cast members who got fired over his statements to a co-star was Isaiah Washington. The actor was written off the show after he was accused of using a homophobic slur to describe a co-star, T.R. Knight. Washington later accused star Katherine Heigl of stating that he should never speak in public again and partly blamed her for his termination.
Grey’s Anatomy star Isaiah Washington went on a barrage against former co-star Katherine Heigl
Contorversies are no stranger to Grey’s Anatomy or to its star Katherine Heigl. Heigl portrayed Izzie Stevens in the show from its pilot episode till season 6. She won the Emmy for Outstanding Actress in a Supporting Role in 2007 and received several other accolades and recognition. She exited the show after season 6.
Heigl has been vocal about issues with many of her characters from the past. She criticized her portrayal in Seth Rogen’s Knocked Up (drawing a lot of controversy) and was also dismissive of her storyline in the fourth season of Grey’s Anatomy. However, her statements about former co-star Isaiah Washington reportedly affected the actor a lot.
Washington played Dr. Preston Burke in Grey’s Anatomy and was accused of using the ‘F-word’ to refer to his co-star T.R. Knight, who then came out as gay. Washington was reportedly arguing with actor Patrick Dempsey on set. However, Washington seemed to blame Heigl for his termination from the show after season 3 and tweeted against her.
Isaiah Washington had previously denied and also apologized for the slur, mentioning that he had apologized to both Knight and Dempsey (via People). However, Heigl had called him out and spoken about the hurt he had caused.
What did Katherine Heigl say about Isaiah Washington’s alleged statements?
Katherine Heigl has never been shy about her statements calling out her co-stars and crew. She has drawn a lot of controversy for this but she never seems to back down. When it came to her Grey’s Anatomy co-star Isaiah Washington’s alleged homophobic slur against T.R. Knight, Heigl did not hold back.
As Washington denied using the slurs at the Golden Globe press room in 2007, Heigl called him out and criticized his denial. She said to Access Hollywood (via People),
I’m going to be really honest right now, he needs to just not speak in public. Period. I’m sorry, that did not need to be said. I’m not okay with it. I just feel like this is something that should be very much in house we need to deal with. T.R. is my best friend. I will throw down for that kid.
Washington continued his attack on Heigl in 2020, blaming her for his termination, and even responded to another tweet saying that she was not important.