It was ultimately Chyler Leigh who decided it was time for her to move on from "Grey's Anatomy." The actress revealed in a statement to TVLine back in 2012 that she told "Grey's Anatomy" creator Shonda Rhimes she wanted Season 8 of the series to be her last on the show, saying, "I met with Shonda and we worked together to give Lexie's story appropriate closure. I am very lucky to have worked with this amazing cast and crew for five seasons. My experience on 'Grey's Anatomy' is something that I will treasure for the rest of my life." Her departure also came just a few months after she took an extended hiatus from the series early on in its eighth season to spend time with her family.
Several years later, Leigh opened up further about her "Grey's Anatomy" exit, including how she felt about Lexie's death, which saw the character pass away while holding Mark Sloan's hand. Talking to Entertainment Weekly about Lexie's death scene, Leigh said, "I felt like they did justice to the story in the way that it ended. It was that — not 'Romeo & Juliet' — but it was that heartbreak and that moment of surrender, I guess, in letting Lexie die. I mean, I cried for hours after we had finished filming, just letting it go. It's letting go a part of yourself, but I think it was handled really well. I thought it was a beautiful way to go."
