Sandra Oh has been with Grey’s Anatomy for ten long seasons, but tonight’s episode will be her last, and she’s taken to Twitter to document it.
Isaiah Washington will be making a return tonight after leaving in season 3, and his presence on the show is highly anticipated by fans. Writer and creator Shonda Rhimes says that bringing back Washington–as character Dr. Preston Burke–was an idea she didn’t take lightly.
“It’s important to me that Cristina’s journey unfolds exactly as it should. Burke is vital to that journey—he gives her story that full-circle moment we need to properly say goodbye to our beloved Cristina Yang,” she said.
Oh’s departure has been a controversial one since it was announced last year, with ABC President Paul Lee commenting that he “didn’t have anything to say” about whether or not other cast members would be leaving. However, he praised Rhimes and her ability to draw in viewers with a story that will likely continue for years, no matter how many cast changes the show goes through.
“Shonda Rhimes is one of the greatest writers that our generation has seen. She’s continuing to write an immensely powerful show. It makes you laugh and cry every week, and what season are we now? And by the way, to her enormous credit, it is completely different than Scandal. And I love it. I think it’s going to stay on the network for many years to come,” he said.
Starting the last day of shooting on Greys with my usual mug of tea. A little meditation and much gratitude pic.twitter.com/xyKs6CxsIP
— Sandra Oh (@IamSandraOh) April 24, 2014
Yes indeedy, Burke is back. pic.twitter.com/WBsmCN3Yv7
— Sandra Oh (@IamSandraOh) May 1, 2014
Fantastically ABC is airing the season 3 finale Cristina & Burke wedding episode at 8 PM. That's the last time we saw him. I'll be tweeting.
— Sandra Oh (@IamSandraOh) May 1, 2014
The good news for fans is, Rhimes says she will keep writing for the show as long as viewers continue to tune in.
“I knew the end of Grey’s Anatomy, and then we kept going, so that I finally just had to write that and move past it,” Rhimes said. “Who knows, at this point, how long that show’s going to go? It’s going to go as long as I feel interested in what happens to those characters.”
Image via Wikimedia Commons
