Five Facts Facts About Former Grey’s Anatomy Star Brooke Smith

Brooke Smith has been in everything from The Silence of the Lambs to Law & Order: SVU, but a lot of people certainly know her thanks to her work as Erica Hahn on Grey’s Anatomy. Though her time on the show wasn’t as long as some would have liked, her character definitely made a splash.

From her famous roommate to her controversial Grey’s Anatomy departure, here are five fast facts you need to know about Brooke Smith!

In The Beginning
Smith was born and raised in New York City, which means she didn’t have to go far in order to pursue acting. Her father was a publisher and her mother was a major publicist who worked with famous actors and directors, including the legendary Robert Redford.

Famous Roommate
While Smith was a young actress getting jobs, she actually shared an apartment with musician Jeff Buckley. In fact, the pair lived together before he recorded what would become his only studio album Grace, which was released in 1994. He died three years later after drowning in the Mississippi River.

Crossing Paths
Before landing her role as Erica Hahn on Grey’s Anatomy back in 2006, Smith actually was in an episode of Law & Order in 1996 with Grey’s star, Ellen Pompeo (Meredith). Smith played the character of Margot Bell while Pompeo played Jenna Weber.

Departure Controversy
Smith first started on Grey’s Anatomy back in Season 2 as a recurring character, but she became a main cast member for seasons 4 and 5. She played Callie Torres’s love interest, but she was shockingly written out of the show following Season 5.

Though Smith believed she was written out because ABC no longer wanted to have a lesbian storyline, creator Shonda Rhimes revealed it was because they didn’t think Hahn and Torres had very good chemistry.

Let’s Get Personal
Smith married Russian cinematographer Steve Lubensky in 1999. The couple has a daughter named Fanny Grace, who was born in 2003. Believe it or not, Smith was in labor with Fanny for a whopping 78 hours! They also adopted a little girl from Ethiopia in 2008 named Lucy.