Knight Reveals Why He Really Left 'Grey's'

Now that T.R. Knight is officially done with 'Grey's Anatomy', he's coming clean about his love/hate relationship with the show and what really went down between he and Isaiah Washington on set. Knight told Entertainment Weekly that after the infamous clash, there was a "breakdown of communication" between himself and executive producer Shonda Rhimes and that once he came out of the closet, his time on set was just a countdown to his exit.

'Grey's Anatomy' became the focus of tabloid news after Washington called Knight a "f----t" during an on-set argument with co-star Patrick Dempsey. At that time, Knight questioned whether it was time to come out or not, admitting he felt pressure from his producers to keep his sexuality out of the media.

"I think [Rhimes] was concerned about having my statement come out so close to the [initial] event," he said. Rhimes denied this to EW though, saying "I said, 'If you want to come out, that's awesome.'"

But by the time season five rolled around, Knight began to see his character George O'Malley slowly written out of the script. According to EW, for the first nine episodes of season five, Knight appeared on screen a total of only 48 minutes, compared to 114 for Sandra Oh's Christina. "My five-year experience proved to me that I could not trust any answer that was given [about George]," Knight said. "And with respect, I'm going to leave it at that."

Although there was much speculation about Knight's departure from the show, cast mate Katherine Heigl tried to keep him from leaving. "The whole thing just broke my heart... I didn't think it was the right decision. I felt like some of the problems could be worked through. But by the time it came to fruition, I was [glad] for him because he was ready to go," Heigl added.

To Knight, it seems that walking away from the show is a relief. "There just comes a time when it's so clear that moving on is the best decision... From an outsider's perspective, I get the [impression that] '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 - that's more important than the money. [So] that's the goal. If I'm lucky to ever work again," Knight said.