‘Grey’s Anatomy’: How 15 Cast Members Left the Show

With all of Grey’s Anatomy‘s plot twists and bizarre medical cases, it has naturally suffered some brutal casting changes along the way.

Characters have moved on to other medical jobs away from Grey Sloan Memorial hospital, suffered heartbreaking on-screen deaths or occasionally vanish with little-to-no explanation.

Whether these losses come during the most traumatic events or during unexpected midseason moments, the long-running ABC medical drama always makes us feel like we’re losing a family member.

Keep scrolling to revisit how Grey’s Anatomy has sent off 15 fan-favorite characters, including Cristina Yang, Derek Shepherd, Callie Torres and George O’Malley.

Preston Burke

The first chief of cardiothoracic surgery in the show’s history left in quite an abrupt moment after leaving Christina at the church on their wedding day in the season three finale.

Though many fans believed Burke deserved more of a goodbye at the time, the character was not seen again for seven seasons, when he returned to help the show say goodbye to Cristina Yang.

Cristina Yang

After 10 seasons of drama — and being involved in shootings, plane crashes and many other of the hospital’s traumatic moments — Cristina found the job of her dreams leading a hospital in Switzerland, which Burke gave to her after he decided to retire.

Izzie Stevens

Izzie left her husband, Alex Karev, after she mistakenly assumed that he had gotten her fired from the hospital amid the merger with Mercy West in season 6.

She returned later in the season to try to get him back after receiving the news that she was cancer free, and had a new job, when Alex told her that he deserved someone that wouldn’t just walk away.

Izzie left in sort-of disgrace when she told Meredith that the hospital, and their house, was never a home, just a place where she used to work.

George O’Malley

Still the most shocking death in Grey’s history, George spent most of his final episode as an unidentified John Doe who had been hit and dragged by a bus after he helped a pedestrian to safety.

It wasn’t until he signaled to Meredith his true identity that the doctors realized who he was, but by the time they did he was already too badly injured for anything to be done to save him. RIP George!

Teddy Altman

Still grieving the loss of her husband Henry, Teddy had been lashing out at Owen for his part in hiding his death from her. In an attempt to help her move on with her life, Owen fires her so she can take a job in Germany. Teddy seems upset at first but then understands why he did it and tells him to fight for Cristina.

Six seasons later, however, Teddy is back in Owen’s life, with a secret baby that will surely make his rekindled marriage to Amelia Shepherd a little more complicated.

Erica Hahn

Hahn was the hospital’s replacement for Dr. Burke and a formidable heart surgeon. Her blooming relationship with Callie Torres, however, came to a crashing halt when Callie saw herself as bisexual more than a lesbian. After the breakup Hahn just quit her job at the hospital and has not been seen again since.

Addison Montgomery

Addison walked away from Seattle Grace for the beaches of Los Angeles, where she headlined her own spinoff series, Private Practice.

She made a few guest appearances on Grey’s Anatomy after that, once yelling at Meredith about fighting for Derek when the couple temporarily broke up in season 4.

Petition to bring Addison Montgomery back for a guest appearance immediately please!

Derek Shepherd

Patrick Dempsey wanted out of his contract, and Shonda Rhimes delivered.

After the brain surgeon saved a family and some teens after a horrific car accident, Derek was hit by a truck seconds later and taken to a nearby hospital. The doctors were not well-trained in trauma protocol and didn’t check for brain bleeds, which led to his death.

Any Grey’s fan that doesn’t cry watching that episode, even to this day, simply has no heart.

Lexie Grey

Lexie definitely left Grey’s Anatomy fans feeling heartbroken after she was the first victim claimed by the horrific season 8 finale plane crash.

After being crushed by one of the wings, she and Mark Sloan professed their love to each other for the last time before we say life leaver her eyes for the last time.

Mark Sloan

Mark also fell victim to the plane crash, though he sadly suffered for a few months at the hospital before he went to sleep and just never woke up again. The episode where Callie and Derek unplug him as they revisit some of their best moments with him remains one of the most emotional episodes to date.

Callie Torres

After 10 years at the hospital, Callie left without much fuss at the end of season 12 when her girlfriend Penny scored a new job in New York.

Her character was mentioned several times, including the possibility of an off-screen reunion between her and Arizona Robbins, when she also left the series.

Stephanie Edwards

At the end of season 13, the promising surgical resident was injured after she started a fire to prevent a rapist from kidnapping a little girl.

The traumatic experience motivated her to find a life outside of hospitals, where she had spent most of her life.

Nathan Riggs

A potential replacement of Derek’s that never really took off, Nathan was always haunted by his fiancee — and Owen’s sister — Megan Hunt having been kidnapped during the warned presumed dead.

When she was found and Meredith brought her back to good health at the beginning of season 14, Nathan and Megan moved to Los Angeles to live by the beach with her adopted son.

April Kepner

Two weeks after almost dying in a terrible accident, April quit her job at Grey Sloan Memorial to dedicate her time to helping underprivileged communities providing medical care.

Near the end of her final episode, April and Matthew Taylor got married as Arizona and Jackson Avery watched.

Arizona Robbins

Arizona also left the series at the end of season 14 after 10 years on the show. After seeing her daughter Sofia struggle with missing her mom Callie, she decided to move to New York for her and start a new practice alongside her mentor.

Off-screen her and Callie were exploring the possibility of getting back together, which we will just accept as a reality at this point.

Grey’s Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.