Charlie Toft,
Sep 04, 2009
Katherine Heigl is leaving Grey's Anatomy after all -- but not for good. We think.
EW's Michael Ausiello reported that the Emmy-winning actress, whose occasional outspokenness has made her a controversial figure among Grey's fans, will be absent from the series for five episodes while she shoots her latest romantic comedy, Life As We Know It. Her sabbatical will coincide with the November sweeps, which can't make ABC all that happy.
As Heigl's movie career has advanced, rumors concerning her eventually leaving the series have been rampant, a situation heightened by her occasional criticism of the show's producers and writers. A season-ending brain tumor storyline for Heigl's character Izzie was widely seen as a way to write her out of the series permanently if both parties felt it necessary.
Grey's executive producer Shonda Rhimes has downplayed the Heigl hiatus, saying that observers should not read anything into it. But even for an ensemble, a midseason break of several weeks is a bit unusual for one of the bigger names on a series. And Heigl's absence will come at a time of change for Grey's, which already had to deal with the offseason departure of T.R. Knight (the September 24 season premiere will deal with his absence) and the pregnancy of Ellen Pompeo, which will keep her off the set for an unspecified time.
