EW accidently leaks Patrick Dempsey’s exit from ‘Grey’s Anatomy’

Early distribution of some Entertainment Weekly magazine copies have revealed Patrick Dempsey’s exit, along with costar Ellen Pompeo, from the 11th season of the ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ television series.

The end of Dempsey’s role as Dr. Derek Shepherd was to be revealed to viewers in an episode scheduled for Thursday in the United States.

Entertainment Weekly, whose paper publication is distributed on Fridays, had prepared a story in collaboration with the channel ABC, which broadcasts the program.

Some subscribers of the magazine received their copy a day earlier, to read “The Doctor is... Out” and with Dempsey’s photograph a text explaining that the actor has left “Grey’s for good.”

Angry fans turned to social networking sites to display their displeasure after hearing the news from the media, which led to an apology from Entertainment Weekly.

“We are surprised that an EW (Entertainment Weekly) subscriber may have received their issue a day earlier than planned, we always try our best to bring readers exclusive news first. We would like to apologize to fans of the show that learned the news ahead of time,” the magazine said in a statement.

Dempsey, who had extended his contract by another two years in 2014, has played the character of Doctor Derek Shepherd since the 2005 launch of the show.

Dempsey’s exit is the most recent in a long list of significant actors to leave the television drama, including Sandra Oh, Eric Dane, T.R. Knight, Isaiah Washington, Katherine Heigl and Kate Walsh.