Ellen Pompeo discusses rumors of why her ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ co-stars are leaving

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laT8M1x16QE

Everett native and actress Ellen Pompeo stopped by “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” and discussed the reaction she has gotten to becoming the highest-paid actress on television, according to The Hollywood Reporter, after negotiating a $20 million payday for ABC medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy.”

On Thursday’s episode of DeGeneres’s show, Pompeo said she thought it was important to be open and truthful.

“Sometimes you have to go through painful things to just be an example,” Pompeo said. “We have a platform.”

Pompeo also said that since the THR article about her salary was published, she has been approached by many different women who shared their own struggles with sticking up for themselves.

“I think, as women, sometimes we’re afraid to ask, we’re afraid to be vocal, we’re taught not to be,” Pompeo said. “They like us quiet, as we’ve seen from this administration. I think it’s really important to encourage each other, encourage other women to stand up and be strong, and know that we’ll be OK and we have each other’s backs.”

Later in the segment, Pompeo addressed the departure of two of her “Grey’s” co-stars, Jessica Capshaw and Sarah Drew, as well as rumors that her salary increase partially caused their exit.

“There’s rumors that it’s because — they’re using the excuse that they’re paying you so much that there’s not enough money to pay them to come back,” DeGeneres said. “That is absolutely not true.”

Pompeo confirmed that the rumors were inaccurate and that she’s not “involved in these kind of decisions.”

“I think that it’s important for us to not pit women against each other, and to really dispel the notion that women are always victims,” Pompeo said. “You don’t have to pit us against each other. We’re not enemies. We do lift each other up and support each other, and we’re not victims. We’re very strong, and we’re capable of many, many things.”