It’s been over a decade since Grey’s Anatomy fans saw Izzie, but that doesn’t mean that fans have forgotten about the former Seattle Grace doc — or her portrayer, Katherine Heigl.
“I felt very protective of Izzie,” Heigl told USA Today in 2010. “I really loved her. I felt she was an admirable woman who certainly made mistakes. But I was starting to not like her, and that bothered me.”
The Firefly star appeared as Izzie Stevens for more than 100 episodes of the ABC medical drama, but she left the series halfway through shooting season six in 2010. Her departure came after Heigl publicly feuded with creator Shonda Rhimes.
“There was a resolution to Izzie’s story. We had planned to have her come back for an episode to really properly tie up Izzie and Alex (Justin Chambers),” Krista Vernoff, who worked on seasons 1-7 of Grey’s before returning as the showrunner for season 14, told the Los Angeles Times in November 2020. “And I wrote that episode, and it was beautiful. The day before it was supposed to start prepping or shooting, I can’t remember, we got a call that Katie wasn’t coming. Just wasn’t coming. Wasn’t going to do it. It became my job to stay up all night for multiple nights and reimagine a script that didn’t include Izzie.”
Vernoff added: “And for years and years and years and years and years, the fans scream at us, ‘How could you?’ Well, that’s the behind-the-scenes story. That’s what happened. I’m not saying that to bash Katie. I don’t know what was happening in her life.”
After the L.A. Times‘ profile was published, however, sources close to Heigl told Us that Vernoff was “mistaken” when it came to the actress’ exit from the series. “Katherine was back in L.A. after parental leave (when she adopted her daughter) waiting to be called to set,” the insider said.
Either way, Izzie’s character was often mentioned on Grey’s Anatomy over the years by Chambers’ Alex Karev or Ellen Pompeo’s Meredith Grey — and after Chambers quietly left the show during season 16, fans learned Alex reunited with Izzie, who secretly had their twins, offscreen in Kansas.
“When I left the show in season 7, people asked me if there was any chance of me ever coming back,” Vernoff told Deadline in 2020 when asked about the chances Heigl and/or Chambers would return one day. “I was smart enough to say, ‘Never say never.’ Here I am, so who knows?”
Scroll through for the most telling quotes from Heigl about Izzie, behind-the-scenes drama and more:
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Everything Katherine Heigl Has Said About ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Since Season 6 Exit
It’s been over a decade since Grey’s Anatomy fans saw Izzie, but that doesn’t mean that fans have forgotten about the former Seattle Grace doc — or her portrayer, Katherine Heigl.
“I felt very protective of Izzie,” Heigl told USA Today in 2010. “I really loved her. I felt she was an admirable woman who certainly made mistakes. But I was starting to not like her, and that bothered me.”
The Firefly star appeared as Izzie Stevens for more than 100 episodes of the ABC medical drama, but she left the series halfway through shooting season six in 2010. Her departure came after Heigl publicly feuded with creator Shonda Rhimes.
“There was a resolution to Izzie’s story. We had planned to have her come back for an episode to really properly tie up Izzie and Alex (Justin Chambers),” Krista Vernoff, who worked on seasons 1-7 of Grey’s before returning as the showrunner for season 14, told the Los Angeles Times in November 2020. “And I wrote that episode, and it was beautiful. The day before it was supposed to start prepping or shooting, I can’t remember, we got a call that Katie wasn’t coming. Just wasn’t coming. Wasn’t going to do it. It became my job to stay up all night for multiple nights and reimagine a script that didn’t include Izzie.”
Vernoff added: “And for years and years and years and years and years, the fans scream at us, ‘How could you?’ Well, that’s the behind-the-scenes story. That’s what happened. I’m not saying that to bash Katie. I don’t know what was happening in her life.”
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After the L.A. Times‘ profile was published, however, sources close to Heigl told Us that Vernoff was “mistaken” when it came to the actress’ exit from the series. “Katherine was back in L.A. after parental leave (when she adopted her daughter) waiting to be called to set,” the insider said.
Either way, Izzie’s character was often mentioned on Grey’s Anatomy over the years by Chambers’ Alex Karev or Ellen Pompeo’s Meredith Grey — and after Chambers quietly left the show during season 16, fans learned Alex reunited with Izzie, who secretly had their twins, offscreen in Kansas.
“When I left the show in season 7, people asked me if there was any chance of me ever coming back,” Vernoff told Deadline in 2020 when asked about the chances Heigl and/or Chambers would return one day. “I was smart enough to say, ‘Never say never.’ Here I am, so who knows?”
Scroll through for the most telling quotes from Heigl about Izzie, behind-the-scenes drama and more:
Credit: Vivian Zink/Abc-Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock
Emmys Reflection
Heigl made headlines in 2008 when she withdrew herself from Emmys consideration because she didn’t think her season 4 “material” warranted a nomination — a move that offended Rhimes at the time.
“I didn’t feel good about my performance and there was a part of me that thought, because I had won the year before, that I needed juicy, dramatic, emotional material,” the 27 Dresses star later told Howard Stern in April 2016. “So, I went to Shonda and said, ‘I’m so sorry. That wasn’t cool, and I should not have said that.’ And I shouldn’t have said anything publicly. But at the time, I didn’t think anyone would notice … I just quietly didn’t submit and then it became a story, and I felt I was obligated to make my statement, and … ‘Shut up, Katie.'”
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Her Relationship With Shonda
Both Heigl and Rhimes have been asked about their falling out over the years, with the writer once declaring there was “no Heigls” allowed on the set of Scandal.
“I am sorry that she feels that way and I wish her nothing but greatness and I have nothing negative to say about [her]. I’m a big fan of her work,” Heigl told Access’ Mario Lopez in 2014 after Rhimes’ remark went viral. “I watch Scandal every week and so I’m sorry she’s left with such a crappy impression of me. I wish I could do something to change that. Maybe I will be able to someday.”
Heigl added that it took “some stomaching” to cope with her negative image. “[I’ve realized] there’s nothing I can do about this except to sort of prove it wrong, you know? And the only way to prove it wrong is for people to have a work experience with me that doesn’t speak to that at all,” she said.
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McDreamy’s Death
“I just can’t even imagine the show without McDreamy. I just can’t! It’s so hard to picture,” Heigl told Entertainment Tonight after Patrick Dempsey left the series in 2015.
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Being Labeled ‘Difficult’
“I may have said a couple of things you didn’t like, but then that escalated to ‘she’s ungrateful,’ then that escalated to ‘she’s difficult,’ and that escalated to ‘she’s unprofessional,’” Heigl recalled to The Washington Post in January 2021. “What is your definition of difficult? Somebody with an opinion that you don’t like? Now, I’m 42, and that s–t pisses me off.”
She continued: “At the time, I was just quickly told to shut the f–k up. The more I said I was sorry, the more they wanted it. The more terrified and scared I was of doing something wrong, the more I came across like I had really done something horribly wrong.”
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How Izzie Would Feel About Jo
TVLine informed Heigl that Alex married Camilla Luddington’s Jo during the season 14 finale of Grey’s Anatomy in 2018. “That’s exciting. Alex needed to find love — true love,” she said that July. “I’d have to start wondering where Izzie is. Like, what is she doing? Where did she go? I would hope that she pursued her [medical] career … She could have children by now. She could be married … If she has moved on, then I would expect Izzie to be very happy for him. She would want him to be happy. She’d be jealous [of Jo] for sure, right? She’d want him to hold out for her.”
Later that month, Luddington reacted to Heigl’s response during an exclusive interview with Us: “That’s really cute! What I imagine is for Izzie is she kind of thinks in terms of how Alex thinks about her. In our 300th episode, he discussed that he hopes she has this amazing life. I hope Izzie is living her best life and she’s hoping the best for Alex.”
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The Ship Has Sailed?
“I haven’t [thought about Izzie] in years. I don’t know if I would or if I wouldn’t,” Heigl told Entertainment Tonight in July 2019 when asked about making a cameo on the long-running show. “I almost feel like that would almost be distracting again to, sort of, what they’ve done with that show in the seven years since I left … and what that’s become and what it is to the fans now. It must feel like it would just be kind of like, ‘Yeah, we already let that go … why are you here?’”
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Alex and Izzie’s Reunion
Less than two years after Heigl celebrated Alex and Jo’s union in 2018, Chambers left the series and it was revealed that Alex and Izzie reunited offscreen.
“I didn’t see it. … Wasn’t he with someone? Listen, isn’t that an a–hole move? I’m sorry!” Heigl told Entertainment Tonight of Alex leaving Jo to be with Izzie and their twins.
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The Latest on a Potenital Return
Since her 2010 departure, Heigl has both ruled out and campaigned for a return to Grey’s Anatomy. As of January 2021, her official stance is: “Never say never.”
She told The Washington Post at the time: “I think it would just be completely dependent upon the team over there, how they feel about it, and the story.”
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Addressing the Emmys Drama Again
In Lynette Rice’s 2021 book How to Save a Life: The Inside Story of Grey’s Anatomy, Heigl commented on the controversy surrounding her Emmy’s consideration withdrawal.
“I thought I was doing the right thing. And I wanted to be clear that I wasn’t snubbing the Emmys. The night I won was the highlight of my career. I just was afraid that if I said, ‘No comment,’ it was going to come off like I couldn’t be bothered,” she noted.
The Life As We Know It actress added, “I could have more gracefully said that without going into a private work matter. It was between me and the writers. I ambushed them and it wasn’t very nice or fair.”