Katherine Heigl was one of the biggest stars of the 2000s, starring in the hit show Grey’s Anatomy and appearing in blockbusters like 27 Dresses and Knocked Up. However, a few years later, she all but disappeared. So, why was Heigel blacklisted in Hollywood?
Heigl’s Controversial ‘Vanity Fair’ Interview
In 2008, the actress gave an explosive interview to Vanity Fair wherein she spilled her thoughts on some of her most famous roles. When asked about the decisions her Grey’s Anatomy character Izzie Stevens had made in previous episodes, Heigl revealed it was all about ratings.
“It was a ratings ploy,” she explained. “It was absolutely something that shocked people; it wasn’t predictable, and people didn’t see it coming. It’s our fourth season; there’s not a lot of spontaneity left. And business is business; I understand that, but I want there to be some cooperation between the business end and the creative end, so there’s some way of keeping it real.”
The reason this quote was so controversial was because actors typically defend their projects to the end, especially if they’re still appearing on said project. By admitting story arcs were sometimes determined by ratings, Heigl broke one of the unspoken rules of Hollywood.
That wasn’t the only quote from the Vanity Fair interview that went viral. When Heigl was asked about her role in Knocked Up, she didn’t hold back. “It was a little sexist,” she said. “It paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys. It exaggerated the characters, and I had a hard time with it, on some days.”
‘I’m playing such a b*tch; why is she being such a killjoy?” the actress continued. “Why is this how you’re portraying women? Ninety-eight percent of the time it was an amazing experience, but it was hard for me to love the movie.”
Rumors Of Heigl’s Demanding Behavior, Tensions On Set
The final nail in her career’s coffin was in 2008, when she released a statement withdrawing herself from the running for that year’s Emmy Awards. “I did not feel that I was given the material this season to warrant an Emmy nomination and in an effort to maintain the integrity of the academy organization, I withdrew my name from contention,” Heigl’s statement read. “In addition, I did not want to potentially take away an opportunity from an actress who was given such materials.”
After that, the headlines were full of tales about Heigl’s rumored bad behavior on set, from not showing up on time, to forcing the show’s producers to arrange filming around her schedule.
Heigl’s career quickly took a nosedive, but in recent years, public opinion has come around in the actress’ favor. Her comments about Knocked Up are now seen as entirely appropriate to most people who have watched the movie and, while her thoughts on Grey’s Anatomy might be seen as a little harsh, they didn’t merit her being blacklisted.
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