Mar 28 2009
Izzie’s Future Still “Grey”
Will she stay or will she go? As of now, no one seems to know, including Grey’s Anatomystar herself, Katherine Heigl. (picture courtesy of AP/Chris Weeks)
Izzie Stevens may not be on her way to television heaven after all.
At a weekend party celebrating the 100th episode of ABC’s medical drama Grey’s Anatomy, Heigl said she did not know whether her cancer-stricken character would return next season or not. Most people assumed that Izzie’s gloomy health outlook (a five percent chance of survival) meant the actress would be exiting the series, but apparently, the Grey’sPowers That Be have not made a firm decision. However, if Izzie lives, Heigl insists she will stay on.
That may come as a tad surprising, given the anti-Grey’s comments Heigl made last year. After winning the Best Supporting Actress Emmy in 2007, Heigl withdrew her name from the 2008 Emmy ballot. She told the Gold Derby Web site, “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, I withdrew my name from contention. In addition, I did not want to potentially take away an opportunity from an actress who was given such materials.”
Not too long after Heigl made those comments (which were met with mixed reaction), rumors ran rampant in regards to her future on the show, and a possible desire to increase her feature film workload. Before the fifth season began in September, Grey’screator Shonda Rhimes denied rumors that Izzie would die from a brain tumor. What ended up transpiring was Izzie having a malignant melanoma, that had spread to the liver and brain. Viewers knew something was not right with Izzie, as she started seeing her deceased lover, Denny, even going so far as to carry on an “affair” with him, a beyond-bizarre plotline suggesting that the show perhaps had jumped the shark.
Fortunately, that did not happen- we learned Denny had appeared to help Izzie discover her illness, and in subsequent episodes, we have seen Heigl and her Grey’s co-stars (especially Chandra Wilson as Dr. Miranda Bailey) handle this story with sensitivity and aplomb. This arc- balanced with other goings-on (such as Dr. Derek Shepherd’s inner struggles after accidentally killing a patient) has rejuvenated the series following a creative dry spell.
While Heigl’s future remains unclear, T.R. Knight may be done with the show. His George O’Malley has not had much of a storyline this season, and in December, Peoplemagazine reported that he asked to be released from his contract. Rhimes claims that Knight’s comment was taken out of context, but last month, Grey’sco-star James Pickens, Jr. claimed that both Knight and Heigl would exit the series, resulting in further confusion about the stars’ plans.
The Will-They-Depart water cooler gossip only adds to Grey’s Anatomy’s colorful history since debuting in 2005- just as the third season kicked off in fall 2006, former star Isaiah Washington reportedly called Knight a “faggot” during an onset argument with Patrick Dempsey. Knight then formally stepped out of the closet, and tensions ran high on the Grey’sset for the remainder of that season; at one point, GLADD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) expressed outrage, and Washington eventually sought counseling for his issues. Come June 2007, ABC decided not to renew Washington’s contract, and his character of Preston Burke disappeared, leaving Sandra Oh’s Cristina to mourn the loss of her lover for a full season. (Cristina since has taken up with Dr. Owen Hunt, who is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder following time in Iraq.)
Another gay-related fallout occurred last November, when ABC abruptly fired Brooke Smith, who had played Sara Rimerez’s on-screen love interest, Erica Hahn. Various media outlets speculated that ABC was trying to “de-gay” the series. Since then, Rimerez’s Callie character has had flirtations with other female characters, so there may not be much credence to the “de-gaying” reports.
What happens next at Seattle Grace- on the series and behind the scenes- I could not predict if I tried. We do know that the on-again, off-again romance of Shepherd and Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) has reached engagement status, and that a wedding between an unconfirmed couple will occur during the series’ upcoming 100th episode (per Rimes). If Shepherd and Grey do tie the knot, the series’ core romantic conflict will be resolved (well, there’s always room for more drama to come as a result of any nuptials).
Right now, I’m mostly interested in the future of Izzie Stevens. Heigl appears open to continuing with the role, and making films during Grey’s summer hiatus. Whether TPTB at ABC and Grey’s choose to let her character beat insurmountable medical odds following her recent brain surgery, time will tell.
In the meantime, we await the next Grey’s drama- real life, series plotlines, it doesn’t matter much. We’re guaranteed no shortage of entertainment, either way.
