Sandra Oh Says Cristina Yang Will Not Return to ‘Grey’s Anatomy’: “I Have Moved On”

Sandra Oh has addressed speculation that her Grey’s Anatomy character, Dr. Cristina Yang, will return to the medical drama. The 17th season has included a handful of exciting returns as Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) sees familiar faces at limbo beach, while she rests in critical condition due to COVID-19. Patrick Dempsey returned as Derek (aka McDreamy), her late husband, with dreamlike visits from George O’Malley (T.R. Knight), Mark Sloan (Eric Dane), and Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh). Still, the question remains: will Cristina make her way onto Meredith’s limbo beach?

“No,” Oh told the Los Angeles Times. “I love it, though, and this is also why I really appreciate the show … that I still get asked this.”

Oh starred in Grey’s Anatomy for 10 seasons as it premiered on ABC, departing from the hospital in the Season 10 finale. On the heels of the series’ Season 18 renewal and more fan favorites heading back to visit, Oh says she’s done with the show.

“It’s very rare, I would say, to be able to see in such a way the impact of a character,” Oh said. “In some ways, you do your work as a bubble and you let it go. I left that show, my God, seven years ago almost. So in my mind, it’s gone. But for a lot of people, it’s still very much alive. And while I understand and I love it, I have moved on.”

Now, the actress has a Golden Globe for her performance on the British comedy Killing Eve, and is set to star on Netflix’s upcoming The Chair. She asks fans of Grey’s Cristina to watch her work on these other shows.

“So please come with me to Killing Eve and on to The Chair and on to the other projects,” Oh said. “Come see the characters that I’m playing that are much more deeply integrated in … the Asian American experience.”

In case you were really holding out for an appearance from Cristina in these pandemic episodes of Grey’s Anatomy, Oh did comment on her vision of the character amidst the pandemic.

“Cristina, like I imagine all the healthcare workers, [would be] wickedly at the front line trying to solve the big problems,” says Oh. “This pandemic [has made] the wealth gaps … even more obvious and problematic, so [she] probably [is] attacking the systematic problems, not just the day in and day out.”

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