14. After six seasons, Murray and Burton exited the series in 2009. But the seeds for Burton’s departure were planted much earlier, she revealed in her memoir.
After her dear friend Scott Kirkpatrick was killed while serving in Iraq in the summer of 2007, her life “took a turn,” she wrote, his death snapping her “priorities and goals back into focus.”
“I had spent the previous few years wandering, never really finding my place, but I wanted more,” she explained. “I wanted a family. I wanted a home that could be a refuge and a blank canvas that would allow me to daydream, to take risks, to try and fail and try again. I wanted to push myself every day. I wanted to make every moment intentional. Wake up intentionally. Work intentionally. Eat intentionally. And rest intentionally.” So she quit, began writing a novel and booked a one-way ticket to Paris.
15. At the time, however, Schwahn told a group of fans in Paris that their departures were due to a contract dispute, according to The Los Angeles Times. “I know they’ve been offered great things, and hopefully they’ll decide to come back,” he said. “If they don’t that’s always a possibility…[the show] has made it through some of the riskier moves we’ve done.”
Murray also spoke out to the show’s viewers, saying in a video, “They’re not bringing me back next year…because they want to save money. Start blogging and being pissed off.” While Burton never returned, Murray made an appearance in the final season.