All the Signs ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Fans Should Prepare for a Katherine Heigl Return in Season 20

Grey’s Anatomy is already the longest-running primetime medical drama in television history. The series is heading into a landmark 20th season in March, which has many fans speculating what surprises Grey’s has in store to mark the historic occasion.

Many members of the original and early season cast have made unexpected returns in recent seasons, including Kate Walsh as Addison Shepherd. Meredith’s (Ellen Pompeo) COVID fever dream in Season 17 even led to deceased characters returning, including Derek (Patrick Dempsey), Mark (Eric Dane), Lexi (Chyler Leigh), and George (T.R. Knight). One of the most noticeable absences on the list of original and early Grey’s Anatomy stars that haven’t made their way back is Katherine Heigl, who played Izzie Stevens on the series until midway through Season 6. Are stars finally starting to align for Heigl to return to Grey Sloan Memorial? Here’s why we think it’s possible.

Why Heigl Left

Heigl’s exit followed a string of behind-the-scenes controversies, including the actress rescinding her Emmy’s submission in 2008 because she felt she hadn’t been given any material worthy of the award. Heigl revealed in a Sirius XM interview with Bevy Smith in 2022 that the long hours and on-set pressure had affected her mental health and drove her to quit the show.

“I was up here at a level of intensity that was not healthy for me. And I just kind of fled in a panic,” she said. During the flurry of cameos and returns in Season 17, Heigl told Entertainment Tonight that it was unlikely she would return to the show. “I’m super focused on this show [Firefly Lane] and my passion for it,” Heigl said. “I would never say never, but it’s not likely.”

Her Netflix drama Firefly Lane has since concluded, and Heigl has had a few high-profile interactions with the Grey’s Anatomy cast that are raising fan hopes.

Heigl is already in touch with the cast

The reunion seen around the internet happened last summer when Heigl sat down with Ellen Pompeo for Variety’s Actors-on-Actors series. The two didn’t discuss Heigl returning to the show specifically, but they did discuss Heigl’s mindset at the time of leaving the show and how both women are revisiting the drama with their daughters. If Heigl is back on friendly terms with Pompeo, who is also a producer on the series now, would it be possible for Heigl to return?

If the Actors-on-Actors interview wasn’t enough, Heigl also joined Pompeo, Chandra Wilson, James Pickens Jr. and Justin Chambers on stage at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards to pay tribute to the series and present the Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie trophy. Of all the people that could have represented the series in that moment, having Heigl be part of the group was a powerful statement. The actress even made a sly reference to her controversial exit during the presentation. “Yes, there have been some changes over the years,” Heigl said, “but the one thing that has remained a constant is an incredible fan base.”

The question now is whether there is a plausible reason to bring Heigl and Izzie Stevens back into the fold.

How an Izzie return works for the plot

Even though Izzie hasn’t been seen on Grey’s Anatomy since Season 6 when she officially broke up with Alex (Chambers), fans did get a semi-recent update about where the character has been. Izzie was front and center when Alex himself left the show in Season 16.

In the world of the show, Alex left Seattle and Jo (Camilla Luddington) after hearing from Izzie that she was out on a farm with her two children. She wrote to Alex to inform him they were also his biological children and the pediatric surgeon hightailed it to be with his former love, leaving Jo absolutely heartbroken.

Alex’s departure and the reasoning were a lot for fans to reckon with in a short space of time. Having Izzie return to the hospital for a case or a personal matter could bring some still necessary closure to that storyline. Even if it was only a guest-starring episode or arc, fans would welcome an in-person update on Izzie and Alex from the characters.

And Heigl wouldn’t be the first star on the show to make a controversial exit and return.

It’s Heigl’s turn

Heigl has admitted multiple times that she’d change the way she originally left the show, but she is far from the only person to leave Grey’s Anatomy in a controversial way. Isaiah Washington played Preston Burke on Grey’s for three seasons before he was fired for using a homophobic slur against T.R. Knight. Washington returned in Season 10 to help send off Sandra Oh’s Cristina Yang.

Meanwhile, Sarah Drew was unexpectedly let go from the series at the end of Season 15. The actress revealed later the decision shocked her and brought her to tears because she had no personal intention to leave the show. She returned three seasons later so her character April could move to Boston with Jesse William’s Jackson Avery and reunite romantically.

Even Dempsey’s Season 11 exit from the series came with controversy. The 2021 unauthorized tell-all book How to Save a Life: The Inside Story of Grey’s Anatomy by Lynette Rice featured a quote from executive producer James D. Parriott claiming that Dempsey “terrorized the set” and gave his fellow actors PTSD. Yet Dempsey was invited back for Meredith’s COVID arc in 2021.

Heigl may have departed the show in a high-profile way, but it seems that she and the cast have made amends. It just now needs to make sense with the executive producers and powers who be to create a reason for Izzie Stevens to return to Seattle. Heigl’s recent openness to being associated with the show may be signs that Izzie’s time has finally come. We can only hope.

Grey’s Anatomy Season 20 premieres on March 14 at 9/8c on ABC. Seasons 1-19 are now streaming on Netflix and Hulu.