Grey’s Anatomy

Now this is certainly interesting news. Before the holidays it was widely reported that TR Knight had asked to be let out of the remainder of his seven year contract with Grey’s Anatomy. Sources close to TR said he was unhappy with his lackluster storyline and lack of screen time. Producers were set to grant TR his wish and let him out of the contract and off the show, but now rumors are swirling that he may not be going anywhere. Kristin at E! is reporting that TR might be staying with the show. Her sources claim that producers are working hard to get him to stay on the show.

I don’t know what to think about this. It seems to me like the producers might be trying to stave off another PR nightmare after the Brooke Smith firing. George is a favorite character on the show and we all know that TR Knight has outstanding potential when given the material. (Remember his father’s surgery and death? And helping deliver Bailey’s son Tucker? TR was great in those stories). I hope he stays and I hope the show can give him a meatier storyline going forward.
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Grey’s Anatomy, TR Knight, Brooke Smith

As reported by TV Bender, Chyler Leigh, aka Little Grey, aka Lexiepedia is expecting her third child. According to Chyler’s reps, her pregnancy will not be written into the show. But I say, what if it was written in? What if Mark and Little Grey had a baby? At this point on the show, nothing seems out of the question. What do you think – should they hide her behind gurneys or knock Lexie up?

Chyler Leigh, Grey’s Anatomy

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Here’s an interesting piece of casting news. We’ll finally meet Derek’s mother in the coming year. Tyne Daly has been cast in the role. Tyne is the older sister of actor Tim Daly. Tim stars on the Grey’s Anatomy spin off Private Practice. Tyne also starred in Judging Amy alongside Private Practice Star Amy Brenneman. Shonda Rhimes must like keeping things in the family.

Tyne joins the ranks of hard nosed mamas on the show. Burke’s mother was played by the fabulous Dihann Carroll. Mer Der fans have been complaining about the lack of screen time for their favorite couple, so this is good news for them. I’m anxious to see if Mama Shepard is in town to help plan a wedding…..

Grey’s Anatomy, Tyne Daly, Shonda Rhimes, Tim Daly, Private Practice, Amy Brenneman

Well George fans, I have some bad news. It is looking more and more likely that TR Knight will be leaving Grey’s Anatomy. Entertainment Weekly is reporting that he has asked creator and producer Shonda Rhimes to be released from his contract. Insiders at the show report to Michael Ausiello that Rhimes has agreed. Of course the speculation swirls as to why he wants out. As we’ve discussed for several weeks now, it’s obvious he isn’t getting screen time. But EW seems to think this goes way back to the drama that led to Isaiah Washington’s firing. Apparently Knight was very unhappy with how Shonda Rhimes handled the situation and felt that she should have defended him publicly much sooner.

I have mixed feelings about this development. It isn’t a fact at this point, but it is looking like George’s time on the show is drawing to a close. From the beginning I have loved the George character but they started to lose me a bit when he impulsively married Callie and the cheated with Izzie. The George of season one was awesome. This George right now – the one in the background of scenes? Not so much.

Are you heartbroken about this news?

Grey’s Anatomy, TR Knight, Shonda Rhimes, Isaiah Washington

TV Guide is continuing to fuel the speculation about the actor in those blind items from last week. Rumors are swirling that TR Knight is indeed the cast member that is on the bad side of the producers. If you’re just now catching up, basically, one rumor is that a Grey’s Anatomy cast member is miserable and unhappy and is very close to being fired. Entertainment Weekly reported that a certain cast member of a hit show didn’t even know they were going to be fired. So are these two rumors connected? In the TV Guide story, they mention that TR has apparently been so miserable that he has refused to attend table reads for the episodes and he has essentially quit the show. And any viewer can see that he hasn’t been in the show much at all. ABC representatives did give this statement to TV Guide, though, “”T.R. has never walked off set in the middle of filming. He attended the table read [on Monday] and will be shooting this week, like any other week of production.”

So would you be upset if George was no longer on the show?

Grey’s Anatomy, TR Knight

Grey’s Anatomy continues to draw big names to the small screen. Eric Stolz will guest star on Grey’s for a three episode arc in January. Eric will play a serial killer that comes to Seattle Grace for medical attention. As per usual, the case will come with medical and ethic drama for the doctors. Eric has directed a few episodes of Grey’s this season. (Who knew?) Also, Jessica Capshaw has signed on for several episodes. She will play a pediatric surgeon named Arizona Roberts.

Enjoy tonight’s new episode – unfortunately, it will be the last new one of 2008.

Grey’s Anatomy, Eric Stolz, Jessica Capshaw

Well, well. I’ve mentioned it a couple of times this season – where is George? Why are they not using TR Knight? He’s barely been in many of the episodes this season. Fans have been wondering and now the press is reporting that someone in the cast is on the producers’ bad side and that is causing them to be under utilized. The cast member is reportedly hard to deal with and is causing problems on set. Could it be TR? Is it a coincidence that both Entertainment Weekly and E! have blind items today – one specifically about Grey’s Anatomy and one about a star that is about to get the axe? What do you think? Wild speculation, or truth?

Check out Kristin’s Blind Item at E!
Check out Aussiello’s Blind Item at EW

Grey’s Anatomy, TR Knight

Word spread late last week that executives at ABC are busy pulling focus groups together for research. What are they researching? Apparently the Izzie and Denny story on Grey’s Anatomy. Rumors abound that the execs are a tad bit nervous with the whole Izzie sleeps with a dead man storyline and want to get viewer feedback. We’ve talked on here about this and some of you love it and some of you hate it. I think it is interesting that they are getting opinions especially since the dismissal of Brooke Smith was so polarizing to the Grey’s audience. Also, it has been confirmed that Jeffrey Dean Morgan will be on the show through February, so the story won’t wrap up any time soon.

Meanwhile, my favorite TV columnist, Kristin dos Santos at E! has a few interesting theories on what is going on with Izzie. Her ideas range from – post traumatic stress disorder to Izzie being the one that is really dead. It’s a good read, check it out.

Grey’s Anatomy, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Katherine Heigl

Good news Kate Walsh/Addison fans! Addison will be crossing back over to Grey’s Anatomy for a rumored three episodes in February. Since spinning off Grey’s to her own show, Private Practice, Addison has returned for one episode. The plot line is rumored to involve Addison’s brother Archer (played by Grant Show). Archer will make his first appearance on tonight’s episode of Grey’s Anatomy.

In other news, Private Practice will get a new timeslot beginning in January. Instead of airing on Wednesday, Private Practice will air on Thursdays, right after Grey’s Anatomy. So what do you think? Will the timeslot change help with ratings? Are you excited to see Addison back on Grey’s?

Grey’s Anatomy, Kate Walsh, Private Practice

Well, people are still talking about the axing of Brooke Smith who played recently out of the closet Erica Hahn on Grey’s Anatomy. There has been plenty of discussion with opinions varying greatly on the topic. I’ve heard everything from “why not just end the Erica and Callie romance but leave her on the show?” to “Good riddance, those conversations were way too graphic.” Unfortunately, this is just more negative press that Grey’s Anatomy does not need. On top of the bad publicity, Grey’s ratings continue to drop. In 2006, the show was ranked number one and as of October 27, it was ranked number 9.

ABC News is investigating the firing of Brooke Smith. In an article on their website, they cite an anonymous industry insider who finds the firing very curious because it was so abrupt. The bottom line is, no one seems to know exactly why Smith was fired. It could have just been that the character didn’t click with Callie, or pressure from advertisers, or pressure from network executives.

And even though we didn’t ask, former cast member Isaiah Washington has issued a statement giving his two cents on Smith’s dismissal:

“You look at the way another consummate professional [is] being treated because her character, her story line [has] potentially made producers uncomfortable, Now that I see what they’re doing to a show that I love and I care about, I think it’s disgusting. The fact that Shonda has been put in this position is extremely unfair.” When asked what his idea of “damage control” was, he said, “Bring Burke back!”

On a sidenote, Michael Aussiello at Entertainment Weekly said today that two other “low level” castmembers have been let go, but no one has seemed to notice. He also reported that Kevin McKidd’s Dr. Owen Hunt has been promoted to series regular.

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Huge news today for Grey’s Anatomy fans. Actress Brooke Smith, who plays Dr. Erica Hahn has been fired from the series. Dr. Hahn’s last show will air this Thursday. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Smith says she feels as though it was not Grey’s creator Shonda Rhimes’ decision to let her go, but rather the ABC brass that demanded it.

“She (Rhimes) did seem upset. I wasn’t having a very good week that week. I was like, ‘Oh, God, what is it with this business?!’ And she said, ‘No, no, no. You are such a great actress. We love you.’ It seemed like some decision came down from above. It didn’t feel like it was her.”

Rhimes issued the following statement to address the firing:

“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.”

So what do you guys think? I think it had to do with the explicit way they were handling the storyline. All of those euphemisms and conversations with Sloan, etc. may have made many fans uncomfortable. I know around my office we have all discussed that we felt they were pushing the envelope too far and for no reason. Smith herself called some of the story “icky.”

Happy or sad to see Hahn go?

Read the full interview with Brooke Smith

Grey’s Anatomy, Brooke Smith

Wow, the season opener is shaping up to be full of guest stars. We’ve already heard that Jeffrey Dean Morgan will reprise his role as the (long dead) beloved Denny. Also joining Denny will be two-time Tony Award winning Broadway star Bernadette Peters, Kathy Baker (from Picket Fences) and Mariette Hartley (last seen as Lucy Spiller’s mom on Dirt). The three ladies will play friends all undergoing care at Seattle Grace.

The season premiere of Grey’s Anatomy will be September 25. It will be a two hour episode.

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Grey’s Anatomy, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Bernadette Peters, Kathy Baker, Mariette Hartley

Well, there’s been a TON of chatter on the internet about the upcoming Grey’s Anatomy season. So let’s discuss.

Rumor has it Katherine Heigl’s Izzie will develop a brain tumor causing her to see (visions of ) Denny again. It’s also been rumored that the tumor will be fatal and is in retaliation for her remarks about not entering the Emmy race this year.

So what do we know for sure? Jeffery Dean Morgan aka audience favorite Denny will indeed be back. ABC boss Steve McPherson indicated at the TCAs that Katherine is staying on Grey’s and that she will have an “explosive storyline” this year. \

Hmm…. What do we think? As much as I love, love, love Denny, aren’t they kind of beating a very dead horse at this point? I suppose if it is done in a decent manner (maybe a dream this time) it will be ok. I guess we’ll see soon enough. Denny will appear in the season premiere on September 25.

Grey’s Anatomy, Katherine Heigl, Jeffery Dean Morgan

Emmy nominations were announced today and Grey’s Anatomy was not nominated for Best Drama. I don’t really think this comes as much of a surprise, considering that many fans thought this season was not its strongest. (Not to mention Katherine Heigl’s flat our admission of just that in her infamous Emmy-gate a few weeks ago). Grey’s lost out for Best Drama to Mad Men, Damages, Boston Legal, Dexter, House and Lost. Let me just pause here and say, Boston Legal?? Are they serious!???? (Mad Men is fantastic, though, so kudos there – I hope they win, even over my other favorite, Lost).

But the good news is that Chandra Wilson and Sandra Oh were both nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama! I really hope Chandra wins. Congratulations also goes to Diahann Carrol. She received a nomination for Best Guest Actress in a Drama for her role as Burke’s mother. And the show also received two Outstanding Makeup nominations.

I hope Chandra wins and if she doesn’t, go Sandra! Maybe next year, Grey’s will get back in the Emmy race on all fronts.

Grey’s Anatomy, Chandra Wilson, Sandra Oh, Emmy Nominations

Wow, I’ve been gone a long time and we have plenty to discuss. Before we talk about what happened in the last two episodes of the season, let’s talk about today’s news. Katherine Heigl has declined to be considered for an Emmy this year. If you recall, last year Katherine took home the award for Best Supporting Actress much to her (and everyone else’s) surprise.

She says she decided against competing this year because she felt she wasn’t given strong enough material. I have to say I agree. We’ve discussed it on here many times – this season of Grey’s Anatomy wasn’t the strongest. The whole George and Izzie debacle alienated a lot of fans. Even if you did like them as a pair, you have to admit that overall the characters suffered from backlash for the way they hooked up (while George was still married).

Here’s what she said in a written statement from her publicist: “I did not feel that I was given the material this season to warrant an Emmy nomination and in an effort to maintain the integrity of the academy organization (decided against competing). In addition, I did not want to potentially take away an opportunity from an actress who was given such materials.”

It makes sense to me, but I have a feeling this will be talked about for days on end as a potential slap in the face to the show and series creator Shonda Rhimes. You guys know I’m a big fan of Katie’s and I think she’s dead on, not to mention ballsy for saying what we all have been thinking for a while. Maybe this won’t blow up, after all, Patrick Dempsey said all last summer that he was sick and tired of the see saw with Meredith and Derek. And low and behold, they are finally back together. So maybe this will be a wake up call to Shonda and company that they need to get back in gear.

And, I hope this opens up the race for Chandra Wilson who did have very strong material to work with this year.

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Shonda Rhimes, Katherine Heigl, Grey’s Anatomy, Patrick Dempsey, Chandra Wilson