Katherine Heigl denies being (intentionally) difficult

Katherine Heigl’s reputation precedes her in Hollywood: After winning praise for her role on Grey’s Anatomy, the actress infamously pulled out of the show in a huff about the “material” she was given.

Although Katherine framed her withdrawal from 2008 Emmy Awards’ consideration as a gracious gesture to leave room for other actresses, she was labeled as difficult. The reputation was solidified in 2010 when she reportedly didn’t show up for production and forced Shonda Rhimes to quickly write off Katherine’s character.

“On some level, it stung and on some level I was not surprised,” the Grey’s Anatomy creator told Oprah in 2012 of Katherine’s conduct. “When people show you who they are, believe them.”

Now that Katherine is returning to television for NBC’s State of Affairs, she’s fielding a lot of questions about the controversy and trying to set the record straight.

“I certainly don’t see myself as being difficult. I would never intend to be difficult,” she said during a press event, People reports. “If I ever disappointed somebody, it was never intentional.”

In terms of what’s different this time around, the biggest factor is that Katherine’s mom, Nancy Heigl, is an executive producer on the new NBC show… Meaning Katherine should have a lot of influence over production. Still, even this route is proving to be controversial as Nancy doesn’t have production experience. When questioned about what her mom will actually bring to the table, Katherine tersely quipped to reporters, “She’ll bake us cookies.”