Katherine Heigl “never saw” her daughter while working on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’.
The 44-year-old actress – who starred as Dr. Izzie Stevens on the ABC medical drama from 2005 until 2010 – is married to singer Josh Kelley and adopted daughter Naleigh, now 14, with him in 2009 but worried she had “missed” her chance to bond with the little one once she had returned to work.
She said: “I never saw that baby. I was at work with three triplets who were playing my goddaughter and I spent more time with them than I did with my new daughter and she bonded with my husband. So, I was always afraid that I had missed that opportunity to really bond with her and that she didn’t love me.”
Katherine – who also has adoptive daughter Adalaide, 10, and biological son Josh, five, – added that at the time she believed that she could “have it all” and it would all eventually work out.
Speaking on ‘The View’, she added: “At the time, becoming a new mother, I was just like, ‘I got it. I got it. I can handle this’. You know, they’ve told us we can have it all. We can have careers and have families and it’s all gonna be great. It’s all gonna work out.”
Earlier this year, Katherine’s co-star Ellen Pompeo – who has starred in the leading role of Dr. Meredith Grey on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ since it began in 2005 – spoke out in favour of the ‘Knocked Up’ actress, recalling that she would often “speak up” about the “crazy” working hours the cast had to endure.
She said: “I remember Heigl said something on a talk show about the insane hours we were working and she was 100 percent right.
“And she was f****** ballsy for saying it. And she was telling the truth. She wasn’t lying. Had she said that today, she’d be a complete hero. But she’s ahead of her time, made a statement about our crazy hours and of course, let’s slam a woman and call her ungrateful.”
Last year,Katherine revealed she had been criticised for speaking up about the unfair working conditions on set.
She wrote on Instagram: “Some of you may remember over ten years ago I was very vocal about the absurdity of the working hours crews and actors were being forced into by production. Even Diane Sawyer interviewed me and not so kindly informed me ‘no one feels sorry for you’. I very publicly and for many many years after got my a** kicked for speaking up.”
