Long-running TV shows always have to mix things up to stay fresh, but there’s something comforting about faces that have been around from the early days. Now in its twelfth season, Grey’s Anatomy doesn’t have too many characters from the first couple of seasons left, and one of them may be out the door before Season 13. Sara Ramirez has played Dr. Callie Torres on Grey’s Anatomy since way back in Season 2, and a recent tweet indicates that Season 12 may have been her last.
Sara Ramirez tweeted a message proclaiming "that’s a wrap" for Callie earlier this week. Given that Ramirez’s contract is set to expire at the end of Season 12, the tweet may in fact be the first major clue that she really is leaving the show. Her character has gone through some crazy highs and lows over the years; the time may have come for her to want to hang up her scrubs as Dr. Torres and move on.
Season 12 has actually set up Callie’s plot in a way that she could be written out of the show without giving her a heartbreaking death a la McDreamy and McSteamy. Callie wants to move to New York to be with her new lady love Penny. Arizona has some problems with this considering that Callie intends to take their daughter with her, but an exit at this point could make sense. Given that Arizona actress Jessica Capshaw has recently renewed her contract for another three seasons, Sara Ramirez could almost certainly return to Grey’s for guest appearances.
If Sara Ramirez chooses to leave Grey’s Anatomy at the end of Season 12 that would mark the third year in a row that a longtime cast member has moved on from the show. Sandra Oh’s exit took Cristina off to advance her medical career in Zurich in Season 10, and Patrick Dempsey sent Derek off to that great surgical ward in the sky when McDreamy was killed off in Season 11. Sara Ramirez’ departure could be especially tough after Seasons 10 and 11.
All of this said, it’s possible that Sara Ramirez was just tweeting that she had wrapped filming for Season 12. Grey’s Anatomy has been officially renewed for a Season 13, and tweets do only have 140 characters. Even if Ramirez had omitted a few of her emojis, she didn’t quite have room to add “P.S. I’m totally coming back and everything is fine.” We can hope, right?
There are a few episodes still to air of Season 12, so it should only be a matter of weeks before we find out if Callie will indeed be taking off for New York and leaving her life in Seattle behind. Tune in to Grey's Anatomy at 8 p.m. ET on Thursdays on ABC to see for yourself. To see what other shows you’ll be able to watch in the not-too-distant future, check out our schedule of midseason TV premiere dates.
