Eric Dane Reflects on His Departure From Grey’s Anatomy
T.R. Knight portrayed the character of George O’Malley in Grey’s Anatomy.
One of the most emotional moments in the show was George’s death at the end of season five. He had decided to become a trauma surgeon in the army and was on his way when he saved a woman from a bus accident, but tragically got hit himself. When he arrived at the hospital, his injuries were so severe that no one recognized him until he wrote his nickname, 007, on Meredith’s hand.
Despite facing challenges with his character’s storylines and decreasing screen time in season five, Knight eventually requested to be released from his contract due to disagreements with the direction of George’s character.
Since then, Knight has returned to work with Shondaland in 2017 on The Catch and has made appearances in The Good Wife, 11.22.63, Genius, and other TV series. In 2019, he appeared in The Bravest Knight and in 2020, had a role in the HBO Max series The Flight Attendant alongside Kaley Cuoco. He also made a brief return to Grey’s Anatomy for a special episode where he met Meredith during her COVID-19 induced coma.