Grey's Anatomy: Sandra Oh Bids an Emotional Farewell to Cristina Yang

Sandra Oh

Less than three months away from leaving Grey's Anatomy for good, Sandra Oh is feeling quite punchy on the set of the ABC medical drama. "I don't listen to you anymore," she playfully tells a crew member who comes to collect her from the ambulance bay to start shooting a scene. "Yes, I'm acting out! Can you tell?" A lot of fans have felt the same way ever since it was announced that Oh would leave the hallowed halls of Grey Sloan Memorial last summer.

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It's natural to feel a sense of loss when any TV character exits a series, but Cristina Yang isn't your garden variety character. Cold, cocky and complex, the highly intelligent Yang has always been stubborn and highly competitive so much so that there was even a brief moment where Yang and her twisted sister Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) were enemies before they cemented one of the most influential friendships in television history. But Oh also brought heart and humanity to the role that earned her Golden Globe and SAG awards, as well as multiple Emmy nominations.

Even though it's not her character's name in the show title, some fans feel that there's no Grey's Anatomy without Oh, making them all the more nervous for her exit in the upcoming Season 10 finale (Thursday, 9/8c). But what some fans might not know is that Oh almost wasn't cast on Grey's in the first place. Initially, the actress went out for the role of Bailey, now played by Chandra Wilson, but the character "didn't resonate with me," Oh says, explaining that she later learned that the role of the ambitious Cristina Yang was still open. Per executive producer Shonda Rhimes' request, Oh met with Rhimes before the studio audition and practiced her scene a few times for Rhimes, her producing partner Betsy Beers and pilot director Peter Horton, thenplanned to return later for the actual audition.

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"I hadn't auditioned yet and I get a call from my manager," Oh says. "She said, 'You've got to go. Leave the audition. You need to leave.' As it happens in deals, a lot of times you have to sign a deal before you audition. It's very stressful and very, very difficult. They weren't able to close a deal, so they told me to leave." Of course, we all know the story has a happy ending. "I don't know how many days later, they offered me the part. It was amazing... It was just one of those moments where you play chicken and you don't move or you do and you walk away."

Now, nearly a decade later, Oh, 42, is facing actually saying goodbye to a character that she's given nearly a quarter of her life to. "It's going to be super easy," Oh deadpans, saying that the reality of the situation probably won't hit her until six months after she leaves the show. "It's like leaving a major relationship in your life. It takes a while to process it out."

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With only five episodes left to film when TVGuide.com visited the set, the actress was trying to enjoy every minute she had left. "I just feel much more present with it," she told us. "There are some times where you take it for granted that you're going to have another OR scene, but you never know. The days that are just so fun and wonderful, it's like I could do this forever. And then there are certain things where I feel like I have to grow. The feeling is sad and happy and everything in between. I can't even put it into words. But mostly it's about being present and enjoying it and being grateful for every moment."

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Grey's Anatomy: Sandra Oh Bids an Emotional Farewell to Cristina Yang