The star was fired from hit medical drama 'Grey's Anatomy' after an onset altercation with actor Patrick Dempsey, in which he used foul word for gay castmate TR Knight, reported Ace Showbiz.
Washington made matters worse backstage at the Golden Globe Awards that year when he reiterated the offensive word as he attempted to play down the incident.
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"When you try to defend yourself, no matter what has been regurgitated, you don't do it backstage at the Golden Globes and unfortunately for me, I had my first endeavour there. No one told me not to drink for four hours without eating! So you know, I was pretty much asleep at the wheel and I had a lot of anxiety," Washington said on a TV Talk Show.
Washington struggled to find acting work for some time after the fall out and he found himself in serious financial trouble.
"After the incident at the Golden Globes, everything just fell apart. I lost everything. I couldn't afford to have an agent... I couldn't afford to have a publicist... I couldn't afford to continue (as an actor)," he said.
However, Washington's time away from the spotlight had a positive affect on other aspects of his personal life as he learned how to rebuild his career.
"I became a better husband, a better father and a better artist."
Washington has since made a return to the spotlight with his new crime drama 'Blue Caprice'.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)