ABC Effectively Dumps Isaiah Washington from ‘Grey’s Anatomy’
Alternative Title: “How to Star in a Hit TV Show and Then Get Yourself Fired”
Please, raise your hand if you didn’t see this coming, like, months ago. If your hand is in the air, now go stand in the corner for being dimwitted.
To everyone else: Following what can only be accurately called a truly pitiful incident, Entertainment Weekly reports that ABC has decided not to give former Grey’s Anatomy star Isaiah Washington the opportunity to sign on for another season portraying the prominent character Dr. Preston Burke.
Not even a March NAACP Image Award for best dramatic actor, oodles of public apologies, voluntarily undergoing counseling, *and* creating a public service announcement for the sexuality rights group GLAAD could wash the stink off of the hideous on-set incident last fall during which Washington, in a verbal altercation with his costar Patrick Dempsey (Dr. Derek “McDreamy” Shepherd), dumbly decided to aim a disgraceful remark at his other costar T.R. Knight (Dr. George O’Malley)—who wasn’t even involved in the argument, mind you—disparaging Knight’s then unpublicized sexual preference. What could possibly have been on Washington’s mind I know not, but he certainly now has plenty of free time to ponder it.
I lost most of my love for Grey’s Anatomy at the end of the second season, when the writers went way too far, in my opinion, and decided to turn my then favorite character, compassionate, independent, and increasingly stronger Dr. Isobel “Izzie” Stevens (Katherine Heigl), into a hysterical, unprofessional, ineffective psycho intern. Yeah, that was the ridiculous, prolonged dying Denny story arc. My interest in the series dropped so low afterwards that I’m currently only thirteen episodes into the third season that just ended.
Still, my deliberate spurning aside, I have to say that Washington has gotten exactly what he deserves. If anyone thinks this is the end of his career, though, do think again. Washington has been in the business for a while, and he’ll certainly turn up in another project in the future, later if not sooner. Whether or not he’ll enjoy a comparably large fan base as in the past remains to be scene. There’s no doubt, however, that this regrettable chapter in his professional life will never close all the way for as long as he remains in showbiz. What a wasteful end that is to a great role.
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Isaiah Washington photo courtesy of Maury Phillips/WireImage.com
