T.R. Knight, who made headlines Thursday by officially confirming he is gay, is finding that life goes on. And that above all, it's busy.
"I'm trying to fit this into a lunch break," the Grey's Anatomy star said at the beginning of a sit-down interview with Scripps Media. "So let's get going."
It sounds like the right moment to offer an apology for cutting into his eating time, but he's not having it. "No, no, no," he says. "Hit me."
The interview is conducted near the hit show's operating room doors. T.R. Knight (whose given name is Theodore Raymond) who plays the hospital's lovable loser, Dr. George O'Malley, is sitting in a waiting room chair, slightly impatient.
Dressed in his blue scrubs, he invokes the image of George, but he's more focused than the sometimes hapless intern. On that day, when dozens of critics are swarming the set, Knight was one of the in-demand actors for interviews.
The same sort of chaos that sets the tone of the show's hospital has come to life in reality. Journalists are darting from room to room. Some are part of organized tours; others are wandering in and out on their own.
It's a rare day when Grey's Anatomy, one of ABC's crown jewels, opens the door to reporters. Workdays for the cast and crew can turn into 18-hour stretches, giving the actors little time to devote to anything but their scripts. Not only that, but creator Shonda Rhimes is notoriously secretive.
Even when the press is permitted in invited groups, the cast can only be available during a break from shooting.
Knight, 33, who started his stage career in his native Minneapolis before going to New York, is relishing George's growth on this day. In a landscape of "McDreamy" and "McSteamy," the rather-plain George is a man all into himself. And one millions adore unwaveringly.
The character's one-night stand with Meredith was a turning point, he says. She didn't want to continue the relationship, and it shattered him.
"When he apologized to Meredith at the end of the season, he realized what his responsibility was in all of it. After acting in a very childish way, he was growing up," Knight said.
Before landing in primetime, Knight received a Drama Desk nomination for his performance in "Scattergood." Knight says his biggest adjustment was leaving New York's boards for Los Angeles' camera lights.
"George and I are different, but the stages of our lives are the same. Everybody has these stages unless you are shut up in a room somewhere," he says. "Moving from theater to television performance, leaving my friends behind in New York, it was all experiences that changed me."
He says in general, he tries not to pay attention to the phenomenal success of Grey's Anatomy.
Internet message boards are totally devoted to George, who has emerged as an unlikely sex symbol on the show. But Knight insists that in real life, he has little time to relish the moment.
"I don't mean to say 'Oh, cry for me. I'm successful.' I don't mean that at all," he said. "There's just going to be some insecurities involved with it all. But, as far as I am concerned, life is fine right now.
"I'm just really busy."
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34 Comments
October 21st, 2006 1:37 PM
Way to go T.R.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You are a much braver man than the bigotted Isaih!!!
October 21st, 2006 3:01 PM
He carries himself so well as both an actor and person. I'm so proud of him for being able to express who he is and I'll forever love him as George :-)
October 21st, 2006 4:35 PM
I'm sorry, you lost me here, Justin. I thought Isaiah was angry because T.R. was late to the set delaying shooting. How does that make him a bigot? I don't think we have heard the whole story and hope that you don't pass judgment or jump to conclusions without having the facts. These people work incredibly long hours and have been together for over two years on a daily basis. It is inevitable that disagreements come up. But, I think that you are mixing issues here. The disagreement with Isaiah happened to come very close to the time that T.R. Night outed himself as being a gay man. It does not mean that one had anything to do with the other.
October 21st, 2006 6:08 PM
If your wondering what the above comments are about it's about the McDreamy vs. Burke fisticuffs session a little while back. Apparently Isiah Washington said something snide about T.R. Knight's sexuality and Patrick Dempsey said NONONONO! that's not right. SO it wasn't a on camera thing, it was a real life fight that T.R. actually broke up.
October 21st, 2006 6:41 PM
Not all but some people have forgotten what Greys is all about, and what makes it the #1 show on television. The characters are real, they have flaws, they make mistakes. It's what makes us relate to the characters. So in my opinion, to release IW from the show when only negate what the show has impressed upon us and made us love the show so much. Things got heated, but all parties involved sat down and resolved the
problem(s), apologized and moved on to more important matters - the show. Unfortunately, there are some who like drama and messes to continue, and won't let go of things, and for those people the only thing you can do is to ignore them. We all could definitely learn a few things about forgiveness from the Amish community. They have to be the most amazing people on earth. The depth of their forgiveness is just amazing. I don't know if I could forgive like that, but I'd like to think I could forgive something less devastating.
October 22nd, 2006 6:50 AM
Where are you all getting your information and why in the world would anyone want to release Isaiah Washington from the show???? I read on People.com and then again on this website that Isaiah Washington and Patrick Dempsey got into a heated arguement about something to do with shooting schedules. No fisticuffs as mentioned above, in fact the article made a point that it did not lead to anything more than words exhchanged and that the problem was solved very quickly between the two of them. I later read in another magazine, something like US, that their argument was about T.R. Knight being late to a scheduled shooting. I have never read anywhere except on fan postings that it had anything whatsoever to do with T.R. Knight's sexual oriientation. What am I missing? I have never read or heard from any reliable source that this had to do with T.R. Knight's sexuality. Please check your facts, or cite your sources. Although I do not condone physical aggression at all (grabbing someone by the neck), I can understand why someone being late for shooting a scene, and the article did not state how often this happens, would be very aggravating to those who are standing around waiting when they put in extremely long hours to begin with. Misinformation can cause a lot of harm. Make sure you have your facts straight before posting and starting rumours that may not be at all true.
October 22nd, 2006 11:56 AM
Well, I looked online for any other articles or news about the altercation between Patrick Dempsey and Isaiah Washington and everthing I found said pretty much the same thing. Apparently Dempsey and Washington were shooting a camping scene on location somewhere and tensions mounted between them for some reason yet to be disclosed (maybe never will be disclosed). When they were back on the set and ready to shoot a scene, T.R. Knight was not prepared and Isaiah Washington became angry. Patrick Dempsey defended T.R. Knight and Patrick and Isaiah argued ending with Isaiah shoving Dempsey stopping production. Both actors worked it out and things are apparently back to normal. Not one story on the event gave any indication that this had anything to do with T.R. Knight's own recent comments about his sexual orientation.
October 22nd, 2006 1:50 PM
did you guys hear that they are thinking about pulling Burke off the show? they are going to like kill his character or something becuz they cant work with him becuz evidently he is being very rude and aggressive towards the other actors.....thats just what i heard i dont know for sure tho
October 22nd, 2006 2:17 PM
I have a lot of respect for T R Knight. Being up front on issues like this isn't easy. He has handled it very well.
October 22nd, 2006 3:36 PM
burke.. i'm sorry but i think the other posters are right... isaia was mad because of the timing of a shooting scene but if you look up it come up in some news that when he shout to t.r knight about the whole timing thing he also add some bad words about he's sexuality, that's when patrick start the fight