Kevin McKidd and Kim Raver have officially left Grey’s Anatomy, but it doesn’t sound like it was their decision to exit the long-running ABC medical drama series.
Owen and Teddy were given a happy ending in the season 22 finale, which aired on May 7. We have all the spoilers on what happened in the episode.
It was previously announced back in March that the two actors would be leaving the show after years of playing Dr. Owen Hunt and Dr. Teddy Altman. Now, we’ve learned why they were cut from the show.
Why did Kevin McKidd and Kim Raver leave the show?
Showrunner Meg Marinis told Variety that she made the decision to cut them from the show “shortly after the new year.” It sounds like the decision was because of budget cuts, with her adding, “It’s no secret what’s happening with network shows, and we’re not an exception, unfortunately.”
Long-running shows on network television are being given major budget cuts all across the board, leading to the departures of main cast members or reduced episodes for them.
It was a super painful decision, from the bottom of my heart. I’m very close to both of those characters and those actors. Kevin has directed double digits of episodes that I’ve written. So it was a very difficult episode to write, and it surprised me how difficult it was to even watch. But when we were faced with needing to exit [someone], it made the most sense for where their characters were in their lives. It felt like it was time. After the ups and downs of their relationship this season, I knew I wanted them to exit together. I thought they finally deserved to be happy, and it became clear to me that maybe they can’t be happy in Seattle — and that’s where the decision was made.
–Meg Marinis, Variety
Meg talked about the affect of budget cuts on the show as well.
Obviously, even though we do go through all of these budget conversations, we try to let the creative dictate the story. Some of our characters, even if they aren’t still married, have children together, so it’s very tricky how to exit characters and what the impact is going to be to the other. It is pretty tough to maintain a large ensemble, especially for 22 years, in today’s financial climate in the industry. If it were up to me solely, I wouldn’t be writing anybody off ever, but I have to see where the story goes and follow the story. Again, I can’t express how these have been some painful few months for the Grey’s family.
–Meg Marinis, Variety
Meg added that creator Shonda Rhimes was “involved in those initial conversations with Kim and Kevin.” She also pitched the exit idea to Shonda before moving forward.
Take a look at all of the upcoming season 23 cast updates we know already.
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