Grey’s Anatomy has seen many characters leave over the seasons and among those is Katherine Heigl’s Izzie Stevens, who left the show in season 6. Created by Shonda Rhimes, Grey’s Anatomy is a medical procedural centering on the lives of the surgical interns, residents, and attendings of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital as they juggle their personal and professional lives. The series is led by Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), who rises from intern to the head of general surgery. Beyond Meredith, the hospital is filled with a revolving cast of characters including Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), George O’Malley (T.R. Knight), and Izzie Stevens.
Over 19-plus seasons, Grey’s Anatomy has seen many characters leave whether by the cast member’s choice or because they were ushered out. Anytime a character exits the series it’s always a question of whether it was planned or not. A similar question, “Why did Izzie leave Grey’s Anatomy?” was posed by many when Heigl disappeared from the series. Heigl has had a well-documented difficult early career and her relationship with many of those she worked with inevitably soured. But in recent years, the actor has rebuilt many of those burned bridges, but it’s still a surprise when the audience watches Izzie leave Grey’s Anatomy.
Why Izzie Left Grey’s Anatomy
In season 5, Izzie was diagnosed with cancer, and after a complicated treatment and surgery to remove a brain tumor (performed by none other than Derek Shepherd, of course), she got better. Izzie went back to work but was fired after giving the wrong dosage of medicine to a patient. From then on, everything went downhill for Izzie, and her appearances in the show became sporadic. Izzie left Seattle to start a new life and later sent divorce papers to Alex Karev. Izzie’s arc came to a full, proper end when Alex also controversially left Grey’s Anatomy, as it was revealed that he left his partner, Jo, and Seattle to go back with Izzie, who was now working as a surgical oncologist and had twins, who were also Alex’s.
Katherine Heigl’s Feud With Shonda Rhimes
In 2008, Katherine Heigl declined to put her name forward for Emmy consideration, stating she hadn’t been given enough material to warrant a nomination. Although she later tried to explain her words, the damage was already done. Though Heigl apologized to Rhimes, the latter told Oprah Winfrey (via TV Guide) that “When people show you who they are, believe them”. After that, rumors about the writers of Grey’s Anatomy planning to kill Izzie began to emerge, but the cancer storyline came a couple of seasons later. In 2009, Heigl requested to be released from her contract 18 months earlier, explaining she wanted to spend more time with her family and that it wasn’t respectful to fans of the series to see Izzie come and go.
In terms of Izzie leaving Grey’s Anatomy, there were also murmurs that Heigl was generally an unpleasant coworker. Rhimes once referred to her when talking to The Hollywood Reporter, saying that on her show Scandal there were “no Heigls”, and she now refuses to work with “nasty people”. Katherine Heigl has a reputation as a difficult person to work with, which is likely why she hasn’t appeared in many big projects since Grey’s Anatomy. The way Izzie’s departure was handled was strange, as she wasn’t given proper closure until many seasons later, and just as a device to give another character an ending.
Izzie Could Return In The Future
It has been years since Heigl’s controversial departure from Grey’s Anatomy and time seems to have healed some of those bad feelings. Rhimes has said she’s, “Open to seeing Izzie again”, which is a much more open gesture to Heigl than she has ever made. Katherine Heigl could return as Izzie, as the actor has stated she would be interested in tying up her character’s arc. A number of Grey’s Anatomy characters could return for season 20, and Izzie could certainly be among them, finally giving fans an insight into how Izzie’s departure has changed her character.
The return of Izzie would also provide a welcome meta-commentary on Heigl herself. Since she has been mostly out of the spotlight, save for Firefly Lane on Netflix, seeing Heigl back on-screen would be a fulfilling sign of how the actor has matured over the years. Izzie leaving Grey’s Anatomy is something that fans and Heigl herself have probably wrestled with over the years and seeing her return to the show would bring closure to everyone associated with the series.
