Summary

  • Dr. Leah Murphy exits Grey's Anatomy twice, causing confusion about her final departure from the show.
  • Grey's Anatomy often weaves characters in and out of the drama, but it forgets to write off Dr. Leah Murphy in season 13.
  • After being fired and then brought back, Dr. Leah Murphy eventually vanishes from Grey's Anatomy without any explanation.

Because Dr. Leah Murphy (Tessa Ferrer) exits Grey's Anatomy actors have left the show, moving on to other projects. The show weaves characters in and out of the drama with ease, usually providing some sort of explanation for why they depart.

However, Grey's Anatomy seemingly forgets to write one main character off the show in season 13: Dr. Leah Murphy. Leah s Grey's Anatomy's ensemble cast in season 9 as a surgical resident. She works hard in her position but gets distracted by her flings with Alex and Arizona. Outside these two relationships, Leah acts cold and uncaring to others due to her underlying insecurities. Eventually, she gets fired from the surgical program at the end of Grey's Anatomy season 10. This isn't the end of her story though.

Dr. Leah Murphy’s Final Appearance Was In Grey’s Anatomy Season 13, Episode 13

Tessa Ferrer as Dr. Leah Murphy is scrubbed up for surgery in Grey's Anatomy

The last Grey's Anatomy installment in which Dr. Leah Murphy appears is season 13, episode 13, "It Only Gets Much Worse." She shows up in this episode for approximately one minute. During her time on-screen, Leah complains because Dr. Stephanie Edwards takes over a case she wants. After this, the character disappears. She doesn't scrub in for any surgeries or talk to any other patients. Leah never appears in another episode of Grey's Anatomy. Neither the show nor Ferrer has ever addressed the character's absence, leaving fans to speculate about what happened to Dr. Leah Murphy.

Murphy Was Brought Back And Then Vanished

Tessa Ferrer as Dr. Leah Murphy smiling while wearing a white doctor's coat.

Much of the confusion about Dr. Leah Murphy's exit from Grey's Anatomy comes from the fact that she got fired from Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. This happens in Grey's Anatomy season 10, episode 23, "Everything I Try to Do, Nothing Seems to Turn Out Right," when the Grey's Anatomy Chief of Surgery Dr. Richard Webber determines that she isn't fit to perform surgery. She comes into the hospital after the mall explosion in the next episode, then she leaves to work at Foster Hospital. She briefly returns to the show midway through season 13.

Dr. Leah Murphy works to get re-hired at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital in Grey's Anatomy season 13, episode 6, "Roar." She puts forth the effort because she's desperate to study under Dr. Maggie Pierce. The two develop a positive working relationship, but Leah sometimes struggles with understanding Pierce's way of thinking. Dr. Murphy appears in four more episodes, then she vanishes from Grey's Anatomy entirely without any further explanation.