Lesbian doctor leaving Grey’s Anatomy

Brooke Smith, who plays Dr. Erica Hahn on the ABC TV series Grey’s Anatomy, has been let go. Her character first appeared last season, and became a regular this season, indulging in the show’s first lesbian relationship with a newly-divorced character (played by Sara Ramirez). Creator Shonda Rhimes denies that the decision to let Smith go was related to the gay story line, saying in a statement released by ABC: “Brooke Smith was obviously not fired for playing a lesbian. Clearly it’s not an issue as we have a lesbian character on the show – Calliope Torres. Sara Ramirez is an incredible comedic and dramatic actress and we wanted to be able to play up her magic. Unfortunately, we did not find that the magic and chemistry with Brooke’s character would sustain in the long run. The impact of the Callie/Erica relationship will be felt and played out in a story for Callie.” Smith’s final episode airs this Thursday.