As many of you know, actor T.R. Knight will not be on Grey's Anatomy when it returns for the 2009-2010 season. Knight has cited trust issues with series creator/executive producer Shonda Rhimes and the diminished screen time of his character (George O'Malley) as the reasons he decided to walk away from Grey's. In the process of leaving the hit show, Knight forfeits $14 million! Some would say that Knight is a man of principle. Others might counter that they'd suck it up and deal with any issues they had with their boss before they'd walk away from $14 mil.For more on T.R. Knight's exit from Grey's Anatomy, click here.
3 comments:
It's really hard for me to say...it sounds like he has a lot of problems with people on that set and his role last season was almost non-existent, which was too bad. George was one of my favorite characters on the show. I'd have to say if it was as bad on the set as it sounds sometimes in the gossip mags and he's never on the show, I'd probably consider it. The contract is probably keeping him from doing other projects he might be interested in. I would imagine he's probably pretty well off compared to your average person, already. I can't say I'm not disappointed because I think George's character balanced out a lot of the whining on that show, but I knew he was gone in the finale when he was already off the elevator waiting for Izzy as she rode up. The first thing I thought was George will be the one gone and that whiny Izzy will return. Sigh.
Exactly what principle is he upholding? More face time? A character he prefers?
It would be difficult to write anything--let alone an ensemble piece--without hiding characters here and there. Seems that he would have known what the show demanded of him, especially for the kind of money they offered.
I could see walking off a show if a character had turned into a demeaning stereotype, or over creative differences that lead to dehuumanizing segments of the population (e.g., Esther Rolle and John Amos' departure from Good Times) as linked to principle. I can even see a stand for more money ("I know I make twenty grand an episode, but everyone else is making $200K," for instance) as one of principle.
But I don't quite get this.
Jessica: It would be interesting to know if T.R.'s contract prevented him from doing other projects. He didn't cite that as a reason for bolting, but you never know.
I have mixed feelings about Katherine Heigl. Part of me thinks she needs to keep her mouth shut. On the other hand, her outspoken manner is refreshing in an era when most celebs give pat/diplomatic answers to questions.
X. Dell: I think the bottom line is that T.R. didn't want to deal with the issues he had with Shonda Rhimes. For $14 million, I would have either tried to straighten it out with Rhimes or work around it. I would imagine that his limited screen time also meant that he didn't have to deal with Rhimes as much than if he were being used more.
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