Grey's Anatomy Sneak Peek - Forever Young

'Grey's Anatomy' cast visits picket line

LOS ANGELES - The cast of the top-rated medical drama "Grey's Anatomy" joined striking Hollywood writers on a picket line Wednesday and said they were shooting scenes for their last scripted episode.

Stars Patrick Dempsey, Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh and T.R. Knight, who plays Dr. George O'Malley, spent their lunch breaks outside the Prospect Studios, where "Grey's" is filmed.

"We're supposed to be going until the end of May and right now our last shooting day will be Tuesday or Wednesday," Knight said. "As actors, we're paid a different way than the writers, but there's also the crew to keep in mind. They are out of work as of next Wednesday."

Said Oh, who plays Dr. Christina Yang: "This matter is way too important not only for our writers, but ultimately everyone who makes movies, everyone who makes entertainment here in this town and again for the rest of the world."

Other cast members included Justin Chambers, James Pickens Jr., Sara Ramirez, Eric Dane and Katherine Heigl, who portrays Dr. "Izzie" Stevens.

"You've got to have a story," Heigl said. "You've got to have a story in order to perform anything, to have any ideas on where to go and what to do, and where the character, story lines, arcs, everything. They're everything. We can't do it without them."

The strike began Monday after negotiations between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to produce a deal on how much writers are paid when shows are offered on the Internet.

"It's really a big tragedy to be out here striking at all," said Dempsey, who plays Dr. Derek Shepherd. "I think there are going to be a lot of people affected by this, that have families, that live paycheck to paycheck, that upsets me profoundly. But at the same time, I do feel that the writers deserve a better break on the deals they have been getting."