In any given year, there are only a small amount of shows that truly manage to grab the world’s attention. However, a lot of series that become the talk of the world for a while go on to fade away from the public consciousness before too long. For example, most people likely remember when Tiger King and The Queen’s Gambit became phenomenons. However, no matter how much people enjoyed those shows and how well made they may have been, most viewers have long since moved past those series.
On the other end of the spectrum, Grey’s Anatomy has been on the air for many, many years and fans still care deeply about the show to this day. For proof of that, all you have to look at is the fact that Grey’s Anatomy fans really wanted to know if the show would return once its seventeenth season came to an end.
Since Grey’s Anatomy has been on the air for so long, a lot of actors have become synonymous with the series. For example, Sara Ramirez’s portrayal of Calliope Torres left an indelible mark on the legions of fans. Despite that, a lot of Grey’s Anatomy viewers are unaware of what Ramirez has been up to since they left the series behind.
Incredible From The Start
Before a lot of actors become famous, they spend years working other jobs. However, Sara Ramirez is such an overwhelmingly talented performer that they were able to make a living as an actor long before they became a TV star.
After attending a performing arts high school, Sara Ramirez went on to graduate from Julliard where they trained as an actor and vocalist. After honing their skills throughout their school years, it took no time at all for Ramirez to take Broadway by storm. In fact, Ramirez starred in stagings of several plays including The Capeman, Dreamgirls, The Vagina Monologues, and Spamalot among others.
On top of Sara Ramirez’s stage performances, they appeared in a long list of other projects before they joined the cast of Grey’s Anatomy. For example, Ramirez showed up in shows like Spin City and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit on top of having small but memorable toles in movies like You’ve Got Mail and Spider-Man. If all of that wasn’t remarkable enough already, Ramirez also played the titular character in a PlayStation 1 video game called “Um Jammer Lammy”.
The Role Of A Lifetime And Beyond
From 2006 until 2016, Grey’s Anatomy fans tuned in to see Sara Ramirez portray Calliope Torres. After debuting in the show’s second season, Ramirez joined the series’ main cast and went on to appear in 241 episodes of the popular medical drama.
Throughout Ramirez’s Grey’s Anatomy tenure, they spoke positively about their experience making the series. Of course, that makes all the sense in the world as Grey’s Anatomy made Ramirez rich and famous. As a result, it took many people by surprise when it was announced that Ramirez was leaving Grey’s Anatomy behind after a decade starring in the show. However, in 2017 Ramirez told Entertainment Weekly that they were “absolutely” right to leave Grey’s Anatomy when they did.
Even though some people may have expected Sara Ramirez to regret leaving Grey’s Anatomy behind, it makes perfect sense that isn’t the case. After all, Ramirez has said that Shonda Rhimes has left the door open in terms of a possible Grey’s Anatomy return. On top of that, Ramirez starred in a couple of seasons of Madam Secretary and they became a voice actor when they landed a starring role in the Disney Channel animated show Sofia the First.
Coming Out And Speaking Out
The same year that Sara Ramirez left Grey’s Anatomy behind, they spoke at the True Colors Fund's 40 To None Summit and revealed that they identified as queer and bisexual. At that time, they wrote an email to The Huffington Post in which they referred to their decision to come out as “very organic” and “natural”.
Roughly four years after Sara Ramirez first addressed their sexuality in public, they took to Instagram to further reveal who they are. As a part of an August 2020 post, Ramirez referred to themself as a “Girlish boy”, Boyish girl”, “Boyish boy”, and Girlish girl” before ending her post with #nonbinary.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CEZak3AHwjG/
Over the last several years, Sara Ramirez has proven to be willing to speak out about the concerns of the LGBTQ+ community. For example, in 2017 a character on the ABC show The Real O’Neals compared bisexuality to having “webbed toes” or “money problems”. Completely unimpressed by the so-called joke, Ramirez wrote on Twitter that they were “truly disheartened and disappointed”. Ramirez would later tweet a link to a Change.org petition imploring ABC to “end biphobia and bi-erasure”. Finally, Ramirez revealed that they asked the network to “own” and “address” the joke, and to “empower our #Queer and #Bisexual youth & community w/accurate positive reflections.”