Cast Of Grey's Anatomy Where Are They Now?
Grey's Anatomy is one of the longest-running American medical dramas in television's history. Currently wrapping up its 13th season on air, creator Shonda Rhimes continues to impress us with her storytelling and dramatic twists and turns. Over the years, there have been some slumps, but that doesn't stop millions of loyal viewers from tuning in each week. At its peak, Grey's Anatomy was reeling in close to 20 million viewers (season 2), and the lowest ratings brought in a cool 10 million (season 8).
We have fallen in love, over and over again, with dreamy doctors and cute interns. We have cried, in frustration and despair, and every time the last few minutes of an episode roll around and Meredith gives us her weekly life lesson with a background of cheesy, emo music.
For loyal Grey's fans (and there are many of us out there!), the departure of a main character can be traumatic at best and utterly depressing at worst. We have said goodbye to some super favorites over the seasons'. First went Dr. Burke, then George O'Malley… then Izzie! Don't even get me started on Dr.Shephard. Season by season, we lost epic characters and gained newbies. The goodbyes weren't easy, but we managed. As long as they never get rid of Dr. Karev, we should be OK.
What we really wanna know is, why did they leave, and where did they go?! What became of our cute, killed-off (or runaway) docs?! Let's review, in order of the departed, the long lost Cast of Grey's Anatomy… Where Are They Now?
15 Preston Burke
Oh yes, Dr. Burke! Preston, played by actor Isaiah Washington, appeared in the first 3 seasons of Grey's Anatomy. He rose to chief of cardiothoracic surgery at Seattle Grace, and entered into a fiery and tumultuous relationship with coworker, Dr. Christina Yang. His departure from the show at the end of the series' third season was chalked up to a relationship implosion. Set to marry Christina, he left her at the altar and disappeared like a thief in the night, never to be heard from again (OK, not true, he made a cameo in season 10 to wrap up the storyline- better late than never?!) Rumours began to circulate in 2006 that Washington had uttered homophobic remarks to cast mate T.R. Knight (George O'Malley) which resulted in his dismissal from the show. He also had problems with Patrick Dempsey on set, which didn't help his situation. These days, you can catch Isaiah on the CW's hit The 100, where he plays character Thelonius Jaha.
14 Addison Montgomery
Addison Montgomery, played by actress Kate Walsh, appeared at the end of Season 1 of Grey's Anatomy to take a position in the neonatal surgical unit of Seattle Grace Hospital. We soon learn that she is the ex-wife of Dr. Derek Shephard. The two rekindle their romance, for a time, while Meredith is put on the backburner. It's uncovered that Addison had had an affair with Derek's best friend, McSteamy himself, Dr.Mark Sloan. After jumping around and trying to find her place in Seattle, Addison decides she wants to have a child, and she moves to LA to pursue that dream. Her departure was necessary for her to focus on Grey's Anatomy spinoff show, Private Practice, where she is the main character. Kate was a regular on the short-lived Bad Judge in 2014-15. She is starring in the upcoming spy thriller, Felt, with Liam Neeson, expected to hit theatres later this year.
13 George O'Malley
OK, I won't lie- this one HURT! Dr. George O'Malley was definitely a fan fave, appearing in the series' first five seasons. We watched him blossom from intern to resident doctor, gaining confidence and skill over the years. He was Meredith and Izzie's roommate, who secretly harboured romantic feelings for Meredith; the two have an awkward one-night-stand, which Meredith later admits was a big mistake. George went on to marry Dr. Callie Torres, whom he cheats on with Izzie, leading to the pairs divorce. In Season 5, he decides to join the U.S Army. Before he has a chance to deport, he is involved in a terrible bus accident, in which he pushes a woman out of harm's way and gets hit himself. Badly injured and disfigured, he arrives to Seattle Grace Hospital, unrecognizable to his friends and co-workers, and has to write on Meredith's hand to express his identity. In a shocking and emotional finale, George succumbs to his injuries. T.R. Knight is a highly respected Broadway actor and focuses much of career to theatre, these days.
12 Erica Hahn
Dr. Erica Hahn was a recurring character in the shows second and third seasons, and landed a full time slot in Season 4. Her character, a high-stress, workaholic, who rarely let her hair down. Even McSteamy couldn't break the ice-cold Erica! She repeatedly turned down his advances, and eventually it is made known that she is a lesbian. She develops a relationship with a not-fully-out Dr. Callie Torres. Their relationship quickly sizzles, as Torres is not "sure" about her sexuality, and Hahn doesn't want to be with someone who isn't sure. The Grey's Anatomy agreed that Dr.Hahn's character would not retain long-term interest, and so she was written off the show during the fifth season. Actress Brooke Smith has been working on small roles in TV series' and films since her departure.
11 Izzie Stevens
Izzie Stevens was another epic character that was extremely hard to say good-bye to. The blonde doctor was first involved in a short-lived romantic liaison with Dr. George O'Malley, which ultimately led to a divorce when they realized that their chemistry had fizzled. She then married Dr. Alex Karev. While she was battling Stage 4 metastatic melanoma, she leaves Karev, due to his inability to totally be present for her. His fears of losing her were ultimately the death of their love story. Izzie leaves Seattle Grace Hospital and sends divorce papers to Karev. The "off the record" account of why Katherine Heigl left the show? She allegedly had issues with coworkers, with Shonda Rhymes and the staff on set. Rumour has it she is difficult to work with, and didn't have many supporters on set! She was a main on NBC's State of Affairs in 2014, and has appeared in several films (mostly rom-coms) since leaving Grey's.
10 Lexie Grey
Lexie Grey, Meredith's "surprise" half-sister, first appeared as a guest star in Season 3. She was then brought on as a regular cast member in seasons 4 through 8. Starting out as an intern, she quickly graduated to surgical resident. Much of her storyline revolved around her romance with Dr. Mark Sloan (McSteamy) and her strained relationship with Meredith. The quirky Lexie was too likeable for Meredith to deny, and the two finally developed a very close bond. After a horrifying plane crash in the dramatic Season 8 finale, Lexie succumbed to her fatal injuries and died in Mark's arms, while Meredith and Cristina were off looking for help. Her departure from the show had nothing to do with any personality conflicts; in fact, actress Chyler Leigh simply wanted to take a break from acting to spend more time with her family. She has a lead role in the CBS/CW show Supergirl.
9 Teddy Altman
Dr. Teddy Altman was not an instant favorite character, to say the least. First appearing in Season 6, she is brought to Seattle Grace care of Dr. Owen Hunt, to mentor his then-girlfriend Christina Yang. Little by little, details of Owen and Teddy's past emerge, and it is made clear that Teddy is madly in love with him. Although Christina is more concerned with Teddy's knowledge and teaching, it soon becomes too much for her to work alongside the two lovebirds. After a brief and awkward period of ignoring each other, Teddy and Owen make up, and Teddy takes a position working for the military. According to Rhimes, it was actress Kim Raver's decision to leave the show. She was a main character in both Revolution and 24: Live Another Day, but hasn't been credited with any additional roles since 2015.
8 Mark Sloan
Mark Sloan, aka McSteamy, aka my husband, blessed us with his Grey's Anatomy presence from Season 2 until early in Season 9. A very competitive runner-up to McDreamy's charm and looks, Mark Sloan played the bad-boy/good-boy of medicine with style and grace. His rocky relationship with Dr. Shephard was a big part of his storyline. Shephard's first-wife, Addison, had an affair with Sloan, which resulted in the end of their marriage. Mark and Derek rekindle their friendship after Meredith almost drowns (remember that?!) and Derek is vulnerable. Sloan ultimately dies as a result of the tragic plane crash at the end of Season 8, that also killed his love, Lexie. Nowadays, dreamy Eric Dane stars in the Michael Bay TV creation The Last Ship as lead role Captain Tom Chandler. He's been married to actress Rebecca Gayheart since 2004.
7 Cristina Yang
Cristina Yang, aka Meredith's "person", was a significant lead character for much of Grey's Anatomy, making her exit at the end of Season 10. Cristina's character embodied a serious, career-focused surgeon who eventually worked her way up to cardiothoracic surgical fellow. She was best friend to Meredith Grey, girlfriend-and-almost-wife to Dr. Burke, and finally girlfriend to Owen Hunt. In a strange wrap-up of the Cristina and Preston Burke storyline, Cristina travels to Zurich, Switzerland, where Dr. Burke has built a hospital. Cristina's series' exit comes at the end of Season 10, when she accepts to take over Dr. Burke's position in Switzerland. Sandra Oh's decision to leave the show was amicable and non-dramatic. After clocking close to a decade's worth of hours on the show, the Canadian actress simply needed to move on to other projects. She had a part in the 2014 film Tammy, and also appeared in the web series Shitty Boyfriends.
6 Shane Ross
Although he only appeared in two seasons of Grey's Anatomy (Season 9 as a regular and Season 10 as a main character), we developed a fondness for the kind Dr. Shane Ross. As a surgical resident, he worked under Cristina Yang, and would soon develop a physical relationship with her. Short-lived as it was, Shane and Cristina continued to work well together, with Shane soaking up every bit of training he could get from Dr. Yang. When Cristina announced that she would be moving to Switzerland, Shane begged her to take him with her to continue his education and training. She eventually agreed, and he left the show at the end of Season 10. Actor Gaius Charles went on to be a regular cast member of the NBC show Aquarius, which was ultimately cancelled after airing for two seasons. He is also passionate about theatre, and starred in the Labyrinth Theater Company's production of Othello.
5 Leah Murphy
Leah Murphy came in as an intern alongside Shane, Jo, Stephanie and Heather, in Season 9. Highlights of her short-lived time on the show included sleeping with Dr. Alex Karev and becoming mildly obsessed with him. In Season 10, she develops a relationship with Arizona, while Arizona and Callie are broken up. Despite trying to keep a cool head and not become too involved, she falls hard to Arizona and subsequently gets her heart broken when Callie and Arizona get back together. She left the show in 10, and made a return in Season 13 as a recurring cast member. She had a recurring role in the CBS show Extant in 2014, and the following year, she appeared in You're The Worst. Fun fact about actress Tessa Ferrer: she has a ton of A-List relatives. Her mother is singer Debby Boone and George Clooney is her first cousin once removed.
4 Derek Shepherd
Oh boy. This was a rough, rough night in television history. I can still remember how I felt when I watched the episode where Derek Shepherd… gulp… dies tragically. Even having a "heads up" before watching the episode didn't numb the pain and empty feelings it left me with for a good two days after the fact! Derek Shepherd hardly needs an introduction. He was McDreamy, the reason we watched Grey's Anatomy, and Meredith's devoted and loving husband. Patrick Dempsey's departure from the series was met with confusion and dismay. Rumours circulated that he had problems on set with cast mates and Shona Rhimes herself. Dempsey simply stated that he wanted to move on to other pursuits, which seem to include racing cars and being a good dad to his 3 children with wife Jillian Fink. We still miss you, McDreamy!
3 Callie Torres
This surprise departure snuck up on me and was almost enough for me to throw in my Grey's Anatomy towel… for good. One of the most likeable, relatable and progressive characters in the show's history, Callie wore many hats over her decade on the show. She was first the wife to George O'Malley, and then to Arizona Robbins. In fact much of her storyline revolved around her romantic relationship with Arizona, and it was crushing when the two split. Actress Sara Ramirez left the show at the end of Season 12, a move that Shonda Rhimes admitted she was not expecting. These days, Sara Ramirez is the voice of Queen Miranda on the Disney animated show Sofia The First. She has also shown interest in appearing in more theatrical productions: Ramirez is classically trained as a musical theatre actor.
2 Stephanie Edwards
OK, Grey's fans, I know that Stephanie has not left yet, so this is technically a spoiler alert (sorry!) I don't know how, but actress Jerrika Hinton has confirmed that Season 13 will be her last as a regular cast member on the show. First appearing in Season 9 as a recurring cast member, Stephanie has been a regular on the show since Season 10. As bestie to Jo, Stephanie has been a big part of the Jo/Alex Karev storyline, always offering support to Jo in her times of need. She had a brief relationship with Jackson Avery, up until, at April's wedding, Jackson professed his love for April. Ouch. We aren't sure where the end of the season will take Stephanie, but it seems that she will be leaving Grey's Anatomy and not appearing in Season 14, set to air this coming Fall.
1 Ellis Grey
Who could forget Ellis Grey, Meredith Grey's estranged mother (and also mother to Maggie Pierce, remember that?) The show focused primarily on her affair and subsequent breakup with Richard Webber, her complicated relationship with Meredith, and in the end, her battle with Alzheimer's disease. Her overbearing and abrasive personality graced the show for a total of 19 episodes, over several seasons. She appeared in some flashbacks after her death, but ultimately, we were happy to never have to see her again! Her character was pretty awful, and her TV death was almost a relief to Grey's fans. Is that so bad to say? The actress behind the character, Kate Burton, soon after became well known for her role as Sally Langston in the hit show, Scandal. She was also in the show Extant, alongside fellow Grey's Anatomy alum Tessa Ferrer.
