Loretta Devine has a funny theory about why she was killed off Grey's Anatomy

Grey's Anatomy type TV Show network ABC genre Drama Where to watch Close Streaming Options

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Loretta Devine won an Emmy for her work on Grey’s Anatomy — then her character, Adele Webber, met an untimely end due to Alzheimer’s. And Devine thinks she knows who’s to blame.

While sitting down for PeopleTV’s Couch Surfing, Devine joked about her exit from the show and another costar’s role in it. “I got an Emmy for this show for best guest spot and then they fired me right after that,” she said. “They killed me with that damn Alzheimer’s.”

Devine jokingly blames Debbie Allen, who joined the show as Dr. Catherine Avery about two years before Devine’s exit. She even says Shonda Rhimes used Allen’s character as her explanation for Adele’s demise. Dr. Avery became a love interest for Adele’s husband, Dr. Richard Webber — the couple first slept together while Adele was deep in the throes of Alzheimer’s. Following Adele’s death — which was actually from a heart attack she suffered following an otherwise successful surgery — Richard and Avery eventually married and remain one of Grey’s Anatomy‘s most enduring relationships.

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Devine and Allen have a long work history — and it’s not the first time Devine says she’s exited a gig after Allen’s arrival. “When I was doing Dreamgirls, Debbie Allen came over, took over that, then I was gone,” she explains, laughing. “Then she came over there to Grey’s Anatomy, took over that, then I was gone. I was at The Client List and they said Debbie Allen was coming in to direct, I got scared as hell.”

Despite this recurring coincidence, Devine assures fans that she and Allen are on good terms. “Debbie’s directed me in a million things. I’ve done her plays,” she says. “I love Debbie Allen, but the truth is the truth.”

Watch the clip above for more.

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