“To end a show this iconic… how do we do it?”
The star of Grey’s Anatomy has hinted that the show’s current season may well be its last. Speaking to CBS Sunday Morning, Ellen Pompeo dropped several hints that the future of the hit TV show is still up in the air.
When asked directly if Season 17 will be the final installment of the hugely popular show, Pompeo said “I can’t say. We honestly have not decided. We’re really trying to figure it out right now.”
The actor, who has played Meredith Grey since 2005, acknowledged that drawing the hit series to a neat conclusion would be a pretty big challenge: “What story do we tell? To end a show this iconic… how do we do it?”
Pompeo added that she has the show’s loyal fans’ interests at heart, saying that she wants to make sure the showrunners “do it right”.
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Speculation surrounding the future of Shonda Rhimes’ series began back in October. In an interview with Variety, Pompeo spoke about her own uncertainty: “We don’t know when the show is really ending yet. But the truth is, this year could be it.”
She added that she is “constantly fighting for the show as a whole to be as good as it can be.”
The latest season of Grey’s Anatomy premiered in November 2020. Covid-19 restrictions interrupted filming last July, causing the longest hiatus between seasons in the show’s history.
Season 17 has seen the staff of Seattle Grace rise to the challenge of tackling the virus. This nuanced take has proved popular with fans of the show who work in healthcare. Hospice nurse Alicia Davidson praised Grey’s Anatomy for its careful navigation of the pandemic, saying: “The difficult decision to push for treatment or promote comfort is my daily reality. This episode had me in my feelings the whole time.”
Jessi Gold, M.D. spoke about how the show resonated with frontline workers: “When you have a platform like that, you can make a difference with how people talk and think about these things. There is something about having your emotions reflected back to you.”
