Katherine Heigl addresses 'bad guy' rep in Grey’s Anatomy reunion with Ellen Pompeo

Katherine Heigl is done apologizing for her "difficult" reputation.

The Firefly Lane star recently reunited with former Grey's Anatomy costar Ellen Pompeo for Variety's Actors on Actors series, where they got candid about the scrutiny that followed Katherine after her departure from the medical drama in 2010. And the 44-year-old admitted that it took years for the comments to stop getting to her.

"It took me until probably my mid- to late-30s to really get back to tuning out all of the noise and going, 'Are you this bad person? Are you unprofessional? Are you difficult?', she told Ellen in the conversation published June 6. "Because I was confused! I literally believed that version, and felt such shame for such a long time, and then had to go, 'Wait. Who am I listening to? I'm not even listening to myself. I know who I am.'"

As a refresher, Katherine stirred up controversy during her almost six seasons on the show when in 2008 she withdrew her name from Emmys consideration—after winning the previous year—saying she didn't feel the material warranted it. She further called out the show's working conditions in 2009, a claim Ellen has also spoken about.

The 27 Dresses star also recalled her headspace at the time.

"I was up here in my head, in my gut, in my mind, in my life. I was just vibrating at way too high of a level of anxiety," she said. "I got on my soapbox and I had some things to say, and I felt really passionate about this stuff. There was no part of me that imagined a bad reaction."