It wasn’t all fun and games when Katherine Heigl and Ellen Pompeo sat down for a photo shoot and interview with Variety recently. The two friends delved into their personal stories on “Grey’s Anatomy,” specifically Heigl’s perceived “difficult” reputation on the show in its early seasons.
Heigl had a lot to say about it, explaining, “I was so naive. I got on my soapbox and I had some things to say and I felt really passionate about those things. I felt really strong. I felt so strongly that I also pulled out a megaphone on my soapbox. There was no part of me that imagined a bad reaction. I felt really vindicated in how I felt about it and where I was coming from.”
She continued that “I’ve spent most of my life — I think most women do — in this people-pleasing mode. It’s really embarrassing when you feel like you’ve really let everyone down. It wasn’t my intention to do it, but I had some things to say and I didn’t think I’d get such a strong reaction.”
Heigl said the benefit of hindsight and now, looking at it from her 40-year perspective, has been helpful in processing it all. She explains that when she was on Grey’s Anatomy, “I was in my late 20s. It took me probably until my mid-to-late 30s to come back to really tune out all the hype and be like, “But who are you? Are you that bad person? Are you ungrateful? You are not a professional? Is it hard for you?’ Because I was wrong! I thought maybe I was. I literally believed that version and felt such shame for so long, and then I had to say, “Wait. Who am I listening to? I don’t even listen to myself. I know who I am.'”
Ellen Pompeo was very supportive of Heigl in the interview, suggesting her co-star was ahead of her time — as actors regularly express their opinions in full force these days on Twitter.
It may not have been an official Grey’s Anatomy reunion, but seeing Katherine Heigl and Ellen Pompeo back together in any capacity should be enough to get fans of the long-running medical drama excited.