"Grey's" star Isaiah Washington apologizes for his insensitive comment

Isaiah Washington is on spin control. The actor has apologized for the headline-making remark he made during a fight with his "Grey's Anatomy" co-star, Patrick Dempsey about another co-star, T.R. Knight. During the fight, Washington used a homophobic term to refer to Knight, who is gay. Since news of the incident leaked, rumors have been spreading that Washington may lose his job to another actor.

Washington told People magazine, "I sincerely regret my actions and the unfortunate use of words during the recent incident on-set. Both are beneath my own personal standards…I have nothing but respect for my coworkers…and have apologized personally to everyone involved."

"Grey's Anatomy" creator Shonda Rhimes has slammed the rumors that Isaiah may be replaced by Eriq La Salle. She told People, "I found [those rumors] not only ridiculous but offensive that we would consider replacing a member of our family. And also the [idea] that one black man was interchangeable with another seemed disturbing to me."

Rhimes denied that there was any ongoing tension stemming from the argument. She says, "The mood's what the mood's always been…We have our fun days, and we have our days when people are tired and the work is hard…[Isaiah and Patrick have] had conversations. They did a really great scene together the other day." She says the fight "was four and a half seconds of one day in three years. I feel like we've already moved on.""

"Grey's Anatomy" star, Katherine Heigl confirmed Rhimes's statement on the Ellen DeGeneres show on Tuesday. She said of the fight, "There was a little burst of testosterone in the room, and then within five minutes…they were totally fine."
Sources for Us Weekly refute the idea that everything is peachy on the "Grey's" set, though. A source for the magazine says, "Everyone on-set is intimidated by Isaiah. He's not approachable and doesn't chat with the cast or crew unless they're addressing him." Another insider claims, "Isaiah is all about ego. His attitude is, 'I'm a star. I should get all the attention.' Few on that set like him."