Ellen Pompeo said she wants 'Grey's Anatomy' to be less 'preachy' amid news she's only appearing in 8 episodes this season

• Ellen Pompeo said she wants "Grey's Anatomy" to be less "preachy."
• She said the show addresses social issues in a way that hits fans "over the head for just one hour."

Ellen Pompeo said on Wednesday's episode of her podcast that she'd like "Grey's Anatomy" to be less "preachy" when telling stories about important social issues and underrepresented communities.

The episode was released the same day it was reported by Variety that Pompeo would take a reduced on-screen role on the medical drama to star in an upcoming untitled limited series at Hulu. Pompeo, who is also a co-executive producer on the medical drama, will only appear on eight episodes of the hit ABC show's new season, according to Variety.

In January, Deadline reported that Pompeo had signed a new one-year deal with ABC and "Grey's Anatomy," confirming that she'd remain on the show. She will still narrate every episode of season 19 and continue to serve as an executive producer, Variety reported Wednesday.

A representative for Pompeo didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

At about the 2:12 mark of Wednesday's new podcast episode, a fan asked in a pre-recorded question if there was a social issue Pompeo wishes the show would address that they haven't after 19 seasons.

Pompeo acknowledged that the question was "tricky" because the show hasn't shied away from writing "important topics" into its scripts over the years.

"I think if I had any desire honestly it would be to be less sort of preachy in one episode about certain things," she said. "It's like, we do one episode about let's see... Asian hate crimes is one that we did this past season that was really moving."

"I think I'd like to see things happen a little more subtly and over time. You know, consistently and less sort of hit you over the head for just one hour and then we never talk about it again," she said.

The mother of three said she wanted "social issues that are important" to be "threads throughout" the series that the audience is continually reminded of, rather than one-offs.

Reports that Pompeo is scaling back her on-screen role in the series aren't entirely unexpected

Per Variety, Pompeo's new eight-episode Hulu series, which is inspired by a true story, is about a Midwestern couple who adopt a child they believe to be an 8-year-old girl with a rare form of dwarfism. Eventually, they come to doubt that the girl is who she says she is, and the story escalates publicly in both the media and the courtroom.

Kate Robbins ("The Affair") will executive produce and write the series, while Pompeo will executive produce through her production company, Calamity Jane. Erin Levy ("Mad Men") has signed on as the series' showrunner.

In an interview published in December, Pompeo hinted to Insider that she was considering imminent changes in her career path and was interested in branching out.

She said that when people try to persuade her to keep playing the role of Meredith Grey, she asks them, "I feel like I'm the super naive one who keeps saying, 'But what's the story going to be, what story are we going to tell?'"

"And everyone's like, 'Who cares, Ellen? It makes a gazillion dollars," she continued.

Season 19 of "Grey's Anatomy" premieres on October 6.