Isaiah Washington: Ellen Pompeo took $5 million payout stay quiet
I probably should have done more coverage of the insidery book about Grey’s Anatomy, How to Save a Life. The book featured an “oral history” with many of the actors about the biggest plot twists of the show and all of the drama behind-the-scenes. While I respect Shonda Rhimes for being a badass boss, Rhimes totally lied for years when she talked about her “no a–hole policy.” All of the actors on Grey’s sound like huge a–holes, and the casting melodramas kind of prove that the show was always a toxic work environment. And yes, Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey were a huge part of that too. I think we realize now that Ellen is massively problematic!
Anyway, one of the original scandals on Grey’s involved Isaiah Washington and whether or not he used a homophobic slur and whether or not it was about TR Knight. Isaiah was the one who lost his job at Grey’s, but the How To Save a Life book reveals that there was a lot more happening behind the scenes than just a beef between Isaiah and TR. Apparently, Isaiah and Patrick Dempsey got into a fistfight at some point, and Isaiah says now that Patrick was always the biggest toxic element on the show.
Not holding back. While reflecting on his past roles, Isaiah Washington called out his experience on the allegedly “toxic” Grey’s Anatomy set as an example of mistreatment.
“Every single day I was a problem that was being reminded, ‘You’re No. 4 on the call sheet. You’re not the star of this show,”‘ Washington, 58, told Tavis Smiley from KBLA Talk 1580 radio on October 21. From Washington’s perspective, his time on the medical drama was just a prelude to him being “used as a scapegoat” to cover up other problems on set. Washington used his 2007 firing, after he allegedly used a homophobic slur, as an example of the supposed “agenda.”
“It was easy. I didn’t know that it would stick to me so hard. But I found out why,” he claimed. “It was an agenda to cover up for the toxic and bad behavior of many of my former castmates on that show. And the top of that would be Patrick Dempsey.”
Washington’s allegations against costars including Dempsey, 55, come after a recently released book, How to Save a Life: The Inside Story of Grey’s Anatomy, brought back the conversation about the fight that led to his exit. In Lynette Rice‘s tell-all, writer Mark Wilding opened up about the explosive fight between Washington and Dempsey.
“It was my episode. I think one of them had been late to set one day and the other one then decided to pay him back by being late himself. Then it sort of exploded,” Wilding detailed. “They got into an arguing match, and then before you know it they were physically fighting. I was standing there in video village. I’m, like, six feet four inches. I’m bigger than both of them. But I didn’t really jump in right away because I’m like, I don’t know if I want to get involved.”
At the time, it was reported that Washington used a slur in reference to his costar T.R. Knight, which he denied. He previously provided his perspective in the book, saying, “We learned that we [had] to watch what we say. We [had] to make sure we [were] more accountable.”
Washington continued: “I did everything that the producers and the network asked me to do. I came back under great stress, and thought I was doing the job I was hired to do. I thought that was going to speak for my future at Grey’s, but apparently that wasn’t the same vision that the network and studio had for me.”
During his interview, Washington alleged that Pompeo was “unnerved” by the success of her other costars. “She couldn’t believe that everybody was more interested in me and Sandra [Oh] and everybody else than her. So I am not shocked that she said what she said [about Denzel Washington],” the Law & Order alum said. “She really thinks that she’s cool with Black people like that, but she’s not.”
Washington also claimed that the Life of the Party star “took $5 million dollars under the table” during the height of the Me Too era “to not tell the world how toxic and nasty Patrick Dempsey really was.”
Eh. I think all things are likely true – Isaiah was fired for cause, because he was disruptive on the set, getting in a fistfight with the lead actor (Dempsey) and using a homophobic slur. Now, I absolutely believe that Dempsey and Pompeo were just as toxic as everyone else, but they were the “leads” and so no one could do sh-t about it other than try to manage them. Did Pompeo get paid off to not talk about Dempsey? Eh. Maybe, maybe not. I’m sure she has a lot of stories about Dempsey. But I bet he has some stories about her too.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
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