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Actor Isaiah Washington ‘lost everything’ after calling a gay castmate ‘faggot’

Sep 16 2013
Written by Aaron Day

Actor Isaiah Washington has said he “lost everything” after a heated scandal in 2007, in which he twice referred to a gay castmate as “faggot.”

Isaiah Washington was dropped from hit US show Grey’s Anatomy in June 2007 after the incident broke out, where actor T.R. Knight alleged that he used the anti-gay slur against him while on set, and that “everybody heard him.”

The controversy then cooled for a period, until Washington made matters worse by reiterating the slur to a tabloid reporter at the Globe Awards, saying: “I never called T.R. Knight a ‘faggot.’”

He has since revealed that he has “lost everything” following the scandal because no one in Hollywood has wanted to hire him.

During an appearance on The View, he said: “When you try to defend yourself, no matter what has been regurgitated, you don’t do it backstage at the Golden Globes and unfortunately for me, I had my first endeavor there.

“No one told me not to drink for four hours without eating! So you know, I was pretty much asleep at the wheel and I had a lot of anxiety.”

Washington struggled to find acting work for some time after the scandal and he found himself in serious trouble financially.

As an attempt at damage control, he originally checked himself into rehab and met with leaders from GLAAD to prepare a series of public service announcements denouncing homophobia.

But upon being let go from the series, Washington indicated much of his behaviour following the incident was demanded by ABC.

In an interview with the Huffington Post, he said: “After the incident at the Golden Globes, everything just fell apart. I lost everything. I couldn’t afford to have an agent. I couldn’t afford to have a publicist. I couldn’t afford to continue.”

However, he also added: “I became a better husband, a better father and a better artist.”

Washington has since made a return to the spotlight in his new crime drama Blue Caprice.