Ellen Pompeo has never been afraid of speaking candidly when it comes to Grey’s Anatomy or the character she’s portrayed on it for two decades and counting. As Season 21 approaches its “terrifying” finale on the 2025 TV schedule, Pompeo opened up about not always having a say in Meredith’s choices. That includes one plotline from the current season that she was “deeply against,” and it’s one that honestly bothered me quite a bit.
We all know by now how much the actress hated Meredith’s infamous, “Pick me, choose me, love me,” scene, despite it being one of the most iconic Grey’s Anatomy “Shondalogues” to date. Apparently that's not her only bone to pick, and Ellen Pompeo admitted to Variety that despite being an executive producer on the show, she’s sometimes powerless to the writers who have the bigger picture in mind. In the actress’ words:
I don’t always have a say in the choices the character makes. And writers will initially service a plot before they might stop to think, ‘Would the Meredith Grey that [Ellen] built — would she make that choice?’ I recently had this happen this past season where I was deeply against a choice that Meredith was making.
Ellen Pompeo is referring to the Season 21 episodes “Jump (For My Love)” and “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (available to stream with a Hulu subscription), in which Lena Waithe guest-stars as Dr. Evynn Moore. Meredith learns that Evynn has hidden her wife’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis so she could receive a life-saving liver transplant. Meredith chooses to report the wrongdoing, causing the liver to go to someone else. Pompeo explained:
My problem with that storyline was the Meredith Grey that I’ve created would have always been like, ‘I’m pissed that you lied, [but] let’s figure out how to game the system together to get you this fucking liver. Fuck the system. The system is broken.’
Yes! That is exactly what I thought when I watched the episode. Is this not the same Meredith who tampered with Derek’s Alzheimer’s trial to ensure Richard’s wife received the active drug instead of the placebo? The Meredith who kidnapped Zola when it looked like her foster child was going to be taken away? The Meredith who got arrested and nearly lost her medical license for committing insurance fraud to save a child’s life? Ellen Pompeo continued:
Instead, Meredith chooses, for some reason, to be mad and snitch and tell UNOS and tell the board that she lied and that she shouldn’t get the liver — when Meredith has subverted the system for 20 years to do the right thing. She’s done free surgeries, whatever it takes, to actually heal and help people.
I agree 100% with Ellen Pompeo, because it seemed really out of character for Meredith to be so by-the-book that she would make a move that prevented someone from life-saving care, regardless of legality. The actress reportedly said she was so livid that she had an emotional outburst, and it was apparently Lena Waithe who helped her see how the writers were angling that plot to service Scott Speedman’s character Nick Marsh (Meredith’s partner).
Sure, Scott Speedman deserves some love, too, but I kind of still agree with Ellen Pompeo. She is the star, after all, and it really came out of left field for me as a longtime fan that she would rat somebody out for doing basically the same kind of things she’s done in the past. At least now I have a better understanding of why!
Tune in for the final three episodes of Grey’s Anatomy Season 21, which will introduce Yellowstone actress Piper Parebo in a recurring role. It all starts at 10 p.m. ET Thursday, May 1, on ABC and streaming the next day on Hulu. The first 20 seasons of Grey’s are also available with a Netflix subscription.