Back in 2006, actor Isaiah Washington got into a physical altercation with Patrick Dempsey on the set of Grey’s Anatomy.
Isaiah played Dr. Preston Burke on the ABC medical drama, while Patrick played Dr. Derek Shepherd.
Amid the fight, Isaiah allegedly used an anti-gay slur against fellow Grey’s actor T.R. Knight, which ultimately led to Isaiah being fired from the show.
At the 2007 Golden Globes, Isaiah casually said the slur while denying that he ever said it to T.R. He later apologized for using the offensive word, though rightfully garnered a heap of backlash from fans and fellow Grey’s costars.
Katherine Heigl, for example, memorably said, “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 OK with it.”
Reflecting on the controversy now, Grey’s creator Shonda Rhimes has admitted that she feared the incident would “kill the show.”
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter this week, Shonda said, “I think the thorn was having the bubble of joy burst so early on Grey’s [with the Washington incident] and not having anybody interested in helping us deal with it because that really shaped a lot of how we looked at the world going forward.”
“I mean, that was the thing we thought was going to kill the show,” she added.
Shonda went on to say that the Grey’s cast are still scarred from the incident. “And it’s funny, every Grey’s actor I talk to who was there during that time is still traumatized by that incident. People still talk about it,” she said.
