Patrick Dempsey will contemplate quitting the hit TV series, Grey's Anatomy, if his character misses out on good plots.
The actor, whose chivalrous character on the medical drama earned the nickname Dr McDreamy, says he will walk away from the show if he is not happy with the storylines when his contract expires in two years.
"I hope the storylines continue," Dempsey told AAP.
"I need good storylines and I hope they do that.
"That's what will keep me or not keep me."
Dempsey earns $US225,000 ($A240,000) an episode on Grey's Anatomy, but if he quits, Hollywood movie studio executives will be waiting for him with bigger chequebooks.
The 42-year-old has become one of Hollywood's most sought after film stars following the recent box office success of the romantic comedy, Enchanted.
The busy Grey's Anatomy shooting schedule prevents Dempsey from pursuing more than a couple of movie projects a year and keeps him away from his wife, hairstylist Jill Fink, his three young children, and his car racing career.
Dempsey's new romantic comedy, Made of Honour, opens in Australian cinemas on May 1.
Dempsey plays a New York playboy who discovers he is in love with his best friend, played by American actress Michelle Monaghan, when she becomes engaged to another man.
Monaghan's character asks him to be her maid of honour.
Dempsey said there was only one thing that went amiss during his wedding to Fink in 1999.
"We just had really drunk photographers," he said.
"They didn't take one decent picture.
"The best photos came from the disposable cameras we left on the table and that's what we ended up putting together in our album."