Say it ain’t so, Derek! We’ve watched Dr. Derek Shepherd treat patients at Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital for a decade now, but McDreamy’s reign on Grey’s Anatomy might be coming to an end. New reports allege that Patrick Dempsey is exiting the beloved ABC medical drama after 10 years.
ABC had no comment on the potential cast shake-up, but according to Page Six, Dempsey’s character has been sidelined on Grey’s since November thanks to his “diva” behavior.
“Patrick has been acting like a diva and has clashed with Shonda. She suspended him for a while, and the word on set is that he isn’t coming back full time,” a source told the paper. “Given all the past problems with Katherine Heigl and Isaiah Washington, there is little tolerance on the show for troublesome talent.”
A rep for the actor tells Us Weekly the story is not true.
In the most recent episode of the show, April 16’s “One Flight Down,” Derek, who has been working in Washington, D.C. since November, missed a meeting with the president and hadn’t checked in with panicked wife Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo). When she finally decided to call the cops, a police car pulled in her driveway.
Dempsey has very openly discussed his Grey’s exit before, telling the Portland Press Herald in November 2014 that he was leaving the show “very soon.”
“I do want to act [after Grey’s Anatomy], but I might take a break and go race and travel first. I haven’t found a piece of material I want to do yet,” the actor, 49, said of his future plans.
This wouldn’t be the only life change for Dempsey in 2015 — in January, the actor and his wife of 15 years, Jillian Fink, announced their divorce.
Original cast member Sandra Oh left Grey’s at the end of the long-running show’s 10th season, and the show famously survived the high-profile, messy exits of stars T.R. Knight, Washington, and Heigl in previous years.
Grey’s Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC.
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