‘Grey’s Anatomy’ actor Patrick Dempsey believes co-star Isaiah Washington is a changed man since undergoing rehab. The two leading men reportedly came to blows on set late last year after Isaiah used a homophobic slur to refer to co-star T.R. Knight, as Patrick confronted Isaiah on T.R.’s behalf. Isaiah began counselling in January, saying at the time, “I regard this as a necessary step toward understanding why I did what I did and making sure it never happens again.” Now Patrick reports that since his return to the show Isaiah is a different man. “You have a feeling when you look at him that something is different,” Patrick says. “You can’t get away from the fact he’s doing a great job on the show. He is intense about his work and he is passionate about it. He allows himself to feel deeply about it and sometimes that is hard for him to contain and control appropriately. I think good will come from his rehab.” However it’s not all good for Isaiah – the incident may have cost him millions in a lost pay rise. An insider says, “Isaiah knows it is his fault that he may not get the fat raise he was going to get. ABC doesn’t have to give him anything – he is under contract for seven years – and this is going to cost him millions. It’s just a bitter pill he is going to have to swallow.” [7 March 2007]