T.R. Knight
Gossip

Grey's Anatomy fans were shocked when T.R. Knight made the decision to leave the cast of one of TV's biggest shows. They probably shouldn't be.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the 34-year-old reveals what led him to leave Grey's Anatomy, and says it was a long time coming.

The show debuted in 2005, turning Knight into a breakout star who received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2007.

But it was an incident in late 2006 that changed everything.

Co-star Isaiah Washington referred to Knight as a "f----t" during an on-set argument with Patrick Dempsey, the media caught wind of it, Knight came out of the closet, and Washington was fired from the show the following summer.

That's the short version. T.R. reveals that he does not directly fault executive producer Shonda Rhimes for how she handled the situation, she discouraged him from coming out and a gradual communication breakdown ensued.

Knight returned to work on Season 4, but struggled a story in which George cheated on wife Callie (Sara Ramirez) with Izzie (Katherine Heigl).

By this past season, the show's fifth, Knight's character George O’Malley all but vanished from the show. Feeling that the character had run its course, and that Rhimes would not give him straight answers, he asked to leave.

"My five-year experience proved I could not trust any answer that was given [about George]," he explains. "With respect, I'm going to leave it at that."

T.R. Knight knows he’s taking a risk walking away from a top 10 show and a $14 million contract: "From an outsider's perspective, I get the [impression that] 'Oh, he’s just a spoiled actor ... he doesn’t know how good he has it.'"

"There are a lot of people who would like to be in my position. But in the end, I need to be fulfilled in my work, and there comes a time when it’s so clear that moving on is the best decision. I have no doubt this was right."

Following the season finale of Grey's Anatomy, and the gossip that dominated the series all year long, the buzz was that either T.R. Knight or Katherine Heigl, or both, would be leaving the show at the conclusion of the drama's fifth year.

Well, it now appears that T.R.'s George O'Malley will move on into the light after his tragic bus accident, while Katherine's Izzie Stevens will beat brain cancer.

Knight is leaving the show for good, according to EW. Meanwhile, E! News reports that Heigl "will be back," though neither ABC or the star have commented.

BEST FRIENDS in real life and on TV, T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl have long been the center of Grey's Anatomy gossip. Looks like one's going and one's coming back.

Season Five's finale left Grey's Anatomy viewers wondering if Izzie, with cancer, would awake after flatlining, while George struggled to survive a bus crash.

The impression you got was that Izzie was ready to return to her life, while George was fine passing on. Looks like this turned out to be the correct conclusion.

Jessica Capshaw, who plays cute lesbian surgeon Arizona, has been signed as a full-time series regular for the upcoming sixth season, premiering in September.

In a word ... seriously!?

As Grey's Anatomy faded to white, Izzie stood in the elevator in her prom dress from Season Two, with George in his new Army uniform staring back at her. The presumed afterlife encounter was the last we will see of either ... until September, anyway.

After almost an entire year of off-screen and on-screen drama regarding the future of Katherine Heigl (Izzie Stevens) and T.R. Knight (George O'Malley), their status remains ambiguous after last night's heart-stopping Grey's Anatomy finale.

Izzie was getting better, and George finally had a purpose, enlisting as an Army doctor. But then she coded at the end, while it a bus crash patient whose facial injuries made him unrecognizable turned out to be George. He crashed, as well.

Creator Shonda Rhimes was still coy in an interview this morning on the fate of Heigl and Knight. Here are some questions about the two beloved, likely-dead characters, and those who we know will be back, that linger as we await Season Six ...

• Where does Dr. Bailey go from here?
• Will Lexie and Mark move in together?
• Are Cristina and Owen like, a couple now?
• Will Jessica Capshaw (Arizona) be around next season?
• As the baby bump becomes more and more visible, is Ellen Pompeo's pregnancy going to be written in, or will she go on leave?
• Was the Meredith-Derek wedding - officiated by themselves, and with hastily written vows recited via post-it note - the real deal?
• Will this be the most talked-about episode since the second season finale (2006), in which Izzie wore said prom dress as Denny passed away?
• Is this ending the result of the producers' own ambiguity over whether George and Izzie will die - and/or the actors' willingness to come back?

What do you think? Was it outrageously bad? Are you exhausted in every way? Did you find the Grey's Anatomy season finale exhilarating?

Shonda Rhimes, Grey's Anatomy's creator and executive producer, wants to set the record straight: T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl are not leaving the show.

"That was a very interesting rumor," Rhimes said. "And it's not true."

Speaking at the 40th NAACP Image Awards in Los Angeles, Rhimes was referring to the recent comments by Grey's Anatomy cast member James Pickens Jr., in which the actor seemed to confirm their impending departure.

Are best friends T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl leaving Grey's Anatomy this season or not? This question has persisted for months - and the answer is still unclear.

"That was absolutely taken out of context," said Rhimes. "Things happen, and ... I think rumors become fact very easily. And you know I don't like to tell you what's going to happen on the show – but that is a rumor."

Not sure how "Yes, she is" and "He's going too" could be taken out of context exactly, but James Pickens, Jr., is now spouting the company line as well.

"We've been living with these rumors for a long time," he said. "When the question was posed to me, I was more trying to congratulate Katie and T.R. on whatever they were going to do. But yeah, I don't have any special info about it."

Mmm hmm. It's hard to know what to even think anymore. But we can tell you this fact with absolute certainty: Katherine Heigl pictures are hot!

Grey's Anatomy spoiler alert! After months of rumors that stars Katherine Heigl and T.R. Knight may be leaving the show, their co-star James Pickens, Jr., a.k.a. The Chief, has added fuel to the fire by sort of confirming they are:

"Yes, she is," he said when asked by Us Weekly if Heigl will exit the show that made them famous. "Wherever Katherine goes, I wish her nothing but the best."

As for Knight, Pickens said, "He's going too."

The network and studio say they cannot confirm anything, and Katherine Heigl's and T.R. Knight's personal reps have declined to comment on the subject.

However, an ABC source says, "There's no way [James Pickens] could know that, because nothing has been decided yet. Nothing has been written and [Heigl and Knight] are still working out what will happen next season with the network."

T.R. Knight and Katherine Heigl want out of Grey's Anatomy.

According to inside sources who work closely with Grey's Anatomy, it is likely that Heigl and T.R. Knight will make an exit at the end of the current fifth season.

Both have asked to leave. However, ABC needs to sign off on letting them out of their contracts, which extend six years, and that hasn't been done.

So why did Pickens say they are leaving?

"I don't think James meant to say what he did," one insider said. "I think he was thrown by the line of questioning and didn't realize what he was saying."

Besides the story lines progressively sucking harder each year, Grey's Anatomy seems to have a major problem on its hands: keeping its cast intact.

The newest rumor, which has pretty much been confirmed: T.R. Knight (George O'Malley) wants out of his contract and the show is poised to oblige.

In the past year and a half, we've now seen ...

• Isaiah Washington refer to Knight by a gay slur twice, ultimately causing Knight to come out of the closet and Washington to be dismissed
• Katherine Heigl, one season after winning an Emmy Award for her role on the show, publicly complain that her character's story lines suck
• Kate Walsh bolt for a medicore spin-off, Private Practice
• Brooke Smith get hired as a full-time cast member, then fired just 10 episodes later after ABC didn't like her character's girl-on-girl action 
• T.R. Knight, having allegedly become a malcontent, ask to be released from the show, which he soured on ever since Washington-gate

This is too bad, as Knight was always a bright spot and fan favorite on the series. At least he and his boyfriend, Mark Cornelsen, are still going strong. Here they are out seeing The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in L.A. last night ...

T.R. Knight may hate his job like you, reading this at work when you should be filing TPS reports, but he and Mark Cornelsen remain happy. [Photo Credit: Splash News]

Grey's Anatomy star T.R. Knight and beau Mark Cornelsen won't be following Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi down the aisle just yet.

But they are happily living together.

"Mark just moved here from San Francisco," Knight said.

The Grey's Anatomy star dismissed rumors they're planning to wed and that he'll officiate a commitment ceremony.

"To clarify, we are not having a commitment ceremony and I am not performing a commitment ceremony," he told Us Weekly.

T.R. Knight, who's been with Mark Cornelsen for months, said May's legalization of gay marriage in California gave him an "extraordinary feeling."

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Sorry, Zac Efron. T.R. Knight is off the market.

The talented Grey's Anatomy actor recently went public with his new boyfriend, Mark Cornelsen, during the 2008 Elton John AIDS Foundation Oscar Party held at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood on Sunday night.

The two held hands and looked very happy together. See below:

Mark Cornelsen (left) and Grey's Anatomy's T.R. Knight.

T.R. Knight came out of the closet after infamously being outed during a fit of rage by former co-star Isaiah Washington, who ended up not being retained by Grey's Anatomy after the conclusion of its third season.

Knight received an Emmy nomination for Grey's Anatomy, while Washington went on to star in Bionic Woman, which got axed. Karma's a bitch.

Previously, Knight had been romantically linked to actor Luke MacFarlane, who went on to date Wentworth Miller of Prison Break fame.

Yesterday, we featured T.R. Knight in a photo finish against the lovely Rachel McAdams, as they both have been sporting pink locks of late.

Today, in yet another edition of our photo finish feature, Knight goes up against Rachel McAdams‘ significant other, the hunky Ryan Gosling.

Why so many pictures of the Greys Anatomy star? Because he's been in the news a lot lately, with the whole controversy and his being on a hit show and all.

And because we came across this photo comparison on a fellow celebrity gossip site, JustJared.com. We thank them for their fine work!

So you tell us, who wears a dog around their neck better?

It's a tough call. This hot Ryan Gosling photo is a few years old, whereas Knight only recently posed for the cover of The Advocate.

The now-openly-gay star emerged from Isaiah Washington's gay-bashing a bigger person. With a cute black lab pup, which was a gift from co-star Katherine Heigl! T.R. gets our vote.

All four of the stars below have something in common: they're attracted to men. Which is all good by us. They also have the pink hair thing goin' on!

We're not sure why, but some do it better than others. Who, in your opinion can pull off the pink 'do and whose locks are more like pink don'ts?

First, we have the newly-transformed T.R. Knight, star of the hit medical drama-comedy Greys Anatomy. He said he was looking forward to time away from the show this summer, and made good on that promise with dyed pink locks.

To his right, we have the lovely Rachel McAdams. She's been rocking the pinkness for some time now. The Notebook and Wedding Crashers star sure is hot, and her fiance, Ryan Gosling, seems to dig it, so we'll give her two thumbs up.

Now it's time for a couple of singers. At left, British cutie Joss Stone, who is in the process of introducing herself on her newest album with great vocal skillz and a radical new look. Somehow she pulls it off. As does a crazy chick who needs no introduction: Pink.

Who's your favorite pink-haired hottie? Let us know.