Sandra Oh on Her 'Grey's Anatomy' Exit: 'I Came Apart'

Sandra Oh is sitting in her trusty director's chair only she's not on the Los Angeles set of ABC's Grey's Anatomy. It's Monday, April 28, the morning after the ABC drama's season 10 wrap party, and Oh is in her backyard, now settling in to the first day of her post-Grey's Anatomy life. She sounds content, laughing and reflective as she talks by phone about her now-complete 10-season journey as Dr. Cristina Yang.

STORY: 'Grey's Anatomy' Season 10 Finale: Farewell, Cristina

For ABC's Grey's, the departure of one of its few remaining original stars and an Emmy nominee, Golden Globe and SAG Award winner as well as a fan favorite leaves the series with a noticeable void heading into its 11th season.

Here, eight months after she revealed she'd be leaving the drama, Oh opens up in an exclusive interview with The Hollywood Reporter about how Cristina's story concluded, the final table read, her emotional farewells and her final scenes with leading man Kevin McKidd (Owen) and "person," Ellen Pompeo (Meredith).

PHOTOS: 'Grey's Anatomy' Cast, Creators Say Farewell to Sandra Oh

What was your last day on set like?

I will say, my last day, people asked if I was going to be sad. I didn't know. But by the end of the day which ended up being late since we shot late Kevin threw me this little party. There was lots of celebration because the party was myself, [co-showrunners] Tony Phelan and Joan Rater, who [both also] left. Gaius Charles [Shane] and Tessa Ferrer[Leah] had left earlier that week. The party was joyous for me the whole day was. I was so excited to come to work. I came in early, which I never do, and hung out.

Take us back to your final table read. What was that like for you?

I realized during this last month that the table read is definitely a ritual. I sit in the exact same spot every time because I'm a creature of habit. Every single table read for 10 years that's 200-odd episodes. It was this ritual that we have every week, to come together to read these words. It was really rich. What got me was, we were starting and as we're all sitting down, our casting director Linda Lowy came up to me she cast the pilot and put me in a lot of stuff before Grey's like Under the Tuscan Sun she came up to me and hugged me. Then we read the script, and it was great, and I was filled with all these feelings.

Besides work, what did you do on your final day?

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Sandra Oh on Her 'Grey's Anatomy' Exit: 'I Came Apart'