Well, this news certainly took us by surprise. Looks like Isaiah Washington will be making his way back to the set of Grey's Anatomy, seven years after he was fired for using homophobic slurs against a fellow cast member.
Washington was a central character in the show for the first three seasons, but an on-set altercation with then co-star T.R. Knight led him to using anti-gay slurs, and resulted in his dismissal from the series. The actor always insisted that it was Knight's fault and that it was in fact in an argument with co-star Patrick Dempsey that he used the slur, and apologised after.
Whichever story is true, the last we saw of his character Dr Preston Burke was during the finale of season three, as he stood Cristina (Sandra Oh) up at the altar. We definitely thought there was no coming back after that, but now it seems he will return for Cristina's farewell episode at the end of this season. Show creator Shonda Rhimes said in a statement: "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."
