It’s been more than 10 years since Sandra Oh left Grey’s Anatomy, and honestly the wound of Cristina Yang leaving Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital still hurts. With a show that’s gone on for so long, getting ready to air season 22 this fall 2025, there’s been a lot of actors and characters who have come and gone. Though the exit I feel like us fans still talk about the most is definitely Cristina’s.
I don’t know what it is about this character in particular. It’s just a gut feeling you have. I mean, for starters Oh is one of the OG actors to have started the series. There’s a nostalgic element viewers tie a show and characters to. Even if it’s been one that’s been on the air for two decades now! Those first seasons, especially because they were so good, make us yearn for the good old days if you will.
I think we also really miss Cristina because she was such a well-written and interesting character. She’s super smart, knows how to make fast-paced decisions which is needed in the ER, is straight forward, and was clearly a natural even when she first started as an intern. Cristina also had some interesting storylines when it came to her love life with Burke and Owen, though perhaps we might not all agree on the dramas that occurred with both.
That still doesn’t take away from her as a character though. She’s a brilliant doctor and surgeon, as many of the characters are. Though there’s just something that made her shine. I also really miss seeing the friendship between Meredith and Cristina play out onscreen.
Sure, the series has kept her around through mentions in the dialogue and text messages, for example. But it’s not the same. Oh and Ellen Pompeo had such amazing onscreen chemistry together that helped play up that special bond between the two friends. They were there for each other like no other, and it definitely feels like there’s a missing piece to Meredith despite the time that’s passed.
The actress has expressed numerous times that she’s not interested in reprising her Grey’s Anatomy role, at least not any time soon. I mean, she’s been gone since 2014. It’s pretty obvious she’s moved on. And look, we cannot fault her for that. Many actors do so and part of it is because once they’ve left a job, it’s behind them. For others, it’s to avoid being typecast because then viewers and studios just see them as, in this case, Dr. Cristina Yang. So, we get it.
I’ve previously said that whenever the ABC medical drama does come to an end, which is completely unknown right now, maybe Oh will at least return in the that final episode. Even if it’s just a quick cameo, I will take it! We’ll see what the future holds.
