Patrick Dempsey accused of ‘terrorizing the set’ of Grey’s Anatomy before his character was killed

Patrick Dempsey has been accused of ‘terrorizing the set’ of Grey’s Anatomy and even giving some castmates ‘PTSD.’

The people behind the his medical drama opened up about the dark side of Dr. McDreamy in the unauthorized oral history of the hit medical drama, How to Save a Life: The Inside Story Of Grey’s Anatomy.

In a scathing excerpt from the book published by The Hollywood Reporter, executive producer James D. Parriott explained how the ‘HR issues’ eventually lead to Dempsey’s character getting killed off in season 11.

‘There were HR issues. It wasn’t sexual in any way. He sort of was terrorizing the set, Parriot – one of the book’s 80-plus sources – said. ‘Some cast members had all sorts of PTSD with him.’ 

Patrick came into the production as the biggest name, giving him instant influence.  

And when his character Dr. Derek Shepherd became primetime’s favorite heartthrob, his impact on set only increased.

His natural charm made him well-liked by many, with writer/producer Jeannine Renshaw recalling: ‘We all love Patrick. Patrick is a sweetheart.’

But some remembered him having too much sway over the production, with Parriott saying: ‘He had this hold on the set where he knew he could stop production and scare people.’

‘The network and studio came down and we had sessions with them. I think he was just done with the show. He didn’t like the inconvenience of coming in every day and working. He and [creator] Shonda [Rhimes] were at each other’s throats.’

That tension boiled over into his relationship with on-screen love interest Ellen Pompeo, who became ‘frustrated with Patrick’ and ‘would get angry that he wasn’t working as much,’ according to Renshaw.

No chemistry off-screen: On-screen love interest Ellen Pompeo became ‘frustrated with Patrick’ and ‘would get angry that he wasn’t working as much,’ according to one insider

‘She was very big on having things be fair. She just didn’t like that Patrick would complain that “I’m here too late” or “I’ve been here too long” when she had twice as many scenes in the episode as he did,’ she explained, later defending him by saying: ‘He would get it. It’s just that actors tend to see things from their own perspective.’

Dempsey himself remembered how grueling the shooting schedule was, saying: ‘It’s ten months, fifteen hours a day. You never know your schedule, so your kid asks you, “What are you doing on Monday?” And you go, “I don’t know,” because I don’t know my schedule. Doing that for eleven years is challenging.’

But complaints from crew and co-stars continued to stack up and as Dempsey’s relationship with Rhimes soured, his days on the show became numbered.

‘I think Shonda finally witnessed it herself, and that was the final straw,’ Renshaw said. ‘

Shonda had to say to the network, “If he doesn’t go, I go.” Nobody wanted him to leave, because he was the show. Him and Ellen,’ she continued, adding: ‘Patrick is a sweetheart. It messes you up, this business.’

According to Parriott, the show crafted several storylines to try and keep Dempsey, including one where his character would stay in Washington, DC so he could shoot completely separately from Pompeo and others.

But the network ‘ultimately decided that just bringing him back was going to be too hard on the other actors,’ said Parriot.

‘The studio just said it was going to be more trouble than it was worth and decided to move on.’