'Grey's Anatomy' writer who faked cancer shaved head for sympathy
What's the story
Elisabeth Finch, a former writer for the popular medical drama Grey's Anatomy, is under fire for allegedly faking a cancer diagnosis.
Finch's deception was uncovered in the new three-part series Anatomy of Lies on Peacock which premiered on Tuesday (October 15).
Per reports, the series explores Finch's elaborate ruse which she maintained for nearly a decade while working on the Emmy-winning show.
Deception details
'She was showing up to work with a shaved head...'
Andy Reaser, a former colleague of Finch, expressed his feelings of "betrayal" over the lengths she went to convince others she was battling cancer and undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
In the series, he described her deception as "performance art," stating, "The thing is, it was so confusing...She was showing up to work with a shaved head and a greenish hue."
"She looked like she lived in a microwave...She was drinking ginger ale and going to the bathroom to take puke breaks."
Unraveled deception
Finch's elaborate lies and subsequent exposure
Before her deception was exposed in a 2022 Vanity Fair expose, Finch had claimed to have survived a rare form of bone cancer, lost a kidney and part of her leg, and endured sexual assault.
She also alleged abuse by a male director while working on The Vampire Diaries.
After the expose, Disney placed Finch on "administrative leave" from Grey's Anatomy pending an HR investigation.
Admission and resignation
Finch admitted to her lies and resigned from 'Grey's Anatomy'
Finch later resigned from Grey's Anatomy and confessed to her lies, saying she "never had any form of cancer."
In a 2022 interview with The Ankler, she admitted that her lies "got bigger and bigger and got buried deeper and deeper inside me."
She acknowledged, "I know it's absolutely wrong what I did. I lied and there's no excuse for it."
Justification and aftermath
Finch's attempt to justify her actions and aftermath
Finch tried to justify her actions by likening her lying to a "maladaptive coping mechanism" people adopt when they experience trauma.
She likened it to behaviors like excessive drinking, drug addiction, or self-harm. "I lied. That was my coping and my way to feel safe and seen and heard," she added.
After the expose, she revealed that some people were "immediately very nasty on text," with family and friends calling her "a monster" and "a fraud."