<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11995416" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="shonda-rhimes" source="Orion">Shonda Rhimes</keyword> told Variety "<keyword id="11995413" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="greys-anatomy" source="Orion">Grey's Anatomy</keyword>'s" legacy of diversity makes her "sad" for TV.</li><li>"We changed the faces that you see on television," she said. </li></ul><p>"Grey's Anatomy" has been recognized for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/08/arts/television/greys-anatomy-goes-colorblind.html">its diverse cast</a> since the first season aired more than 16 years ago. But the medical drama's creator Shonda Rhimes recently <a href="https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/greys-anatomy-shonda-rhimes-legacy-ending-1235106155/">explained to Variety</a> that making an impact in representation on TV is a bittersweet achievement. </p><p>When asked about what she thinks the legacy of her show will be, she said, "Sadly, I think the legacy might simply just be that we made it possible for more people of color to have jobs on camera on television." </p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/shonda-rhimes-backlash-greys-anatomy-ellen-pompeo-yelled-denzel-washington-2021-11">Rhimes was very clear</a> on how that makes her feel, saying that the achievement "makes me embarrassed for television."</p><div type="image" title="shonda rhimes" height="1369" width="1825" msid="87689897" hostid="261"></div><p>"We changed the faces that you see on television. And it should not have taken so long for that to happen," Rhimes continued, adding that it makes her feel "arrogant" and "sad" to admit that. </p><p>Rhimes also recalled some backhanded compliments she used to receive in the early years of "Grey's Anatomy" for her inclusive casting. "My favorite thing to hear was, 'Oh, that feels like a fantasy!'" she said. "And I'd be like, 'So basically, the reality that I live in feels like a <a href="https://www.insider.com/ellen-pompeo-horrified-by-greys-anatomy-love-me-scene-2021-11">fantasy to you</a>." </p><h2>'Grey's Anatomy' is still making groundbreaking casting decisions in season 18</h2><p>In October, <a href="https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/greys-anatomy-non-binary-doctor-er-fightmaster-1235098266/">Variety announced</a> that "Grey's Anatomy" actor <keyword id="12527727" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="e-r-fightmaster" source="Orion">E.R. Fightmaster</keyword> would recur on the series as Dr. Kai Bartley. They are the first non-binary actor to play a doctor on the show. </p><p>Weeks before the announcement was made that Fightmaster would recur, "Grey's Anatomy" writer <keyword id="12320123" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jamie-denbo" source="Orion">Jamie Denbo</keyword> spoke to Insider about Dr. Bartley. </p><p>"'Grey's' has always been sort of at the forefront of representation on screen. It is a prerogative, it is an objective of this show to always strive for great representation," she said. "And we just wanted to bring a character who was a doctor who happens to be non-binary."</p><div type="image" title="E.R. Fightmaster on &quot;Grey's Anatomy&quot;" height="1998" width="2669" msid="87689898" hostid="261"></div><p>Denbo pointed out that part of authentic representation involves letting a character exist without putting a "spotlight" on what makes them different with an explicit storyline. </p><p>"We just wanted a really great doctor, and the actor is tremendous," Denbo said. "Everyone is delighted by E.R. Fightmaster who for us just really electrifies the screen." </p><p>She declined to comment on whether Kai and Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone) eventually become a romantic pairing, though she <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-addison-meets-dereks-kids-ultimate-forgiveness-2021-10">wrote a scene</a> in which the characters have a rather steamy conversation over Zoom. </p><p>Fans are certainly picking up on the pair's chemistry, though. </p><blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">-JJ | ✨  (@greytion19) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1456622057349959683?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2021</a></blockquote>

Shonda Rhimes feels 'embarrassed for television' because of how groundbreaking 'Grey's Anatomy' was in its diverse casting

<ul class="summary-list"><li>"<keyword id="11995413" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="greys-anatomy" source="Orion">Grey's Anatomy</keyword>" creator <keyword id="11995416" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="shonda-rhimes" source="Orion">Shonda Rhimes</keyword> told Variety she's rewritten its finale "a good eight times."</li><li>She's not the showrunner anymore but confirmed she decides when it ends.</li></ul><p><keyword id="11896774" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="abc" source="Orion">ABC</keyword>'s hit <a href="https://www.insider.com/ellen-pompeo-horrified-by-greys-anatomy-love-me-scene-2021-11">medical drama "Grey's Anatomy"</a> has been on the air for 18 seasons, a history-making run its creator, Shonda Rhimes, couldn't have predicted when the pilot, "A Hard Day's Night," aired on March 27, 2005. </p><p>Rhimes <a href="https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/greys-anatomy-shonda-rhimes-legacy-ending-1235106155/">told Variety</a> in a recent interview that while she served as official showrunner on the series, she planned many possible endings, just in case. </p><p>"I've written the end of that series, I want to say, a good eight times," she said. "And all of those things have already happened. So I give up on that, you know what I mean?"</p><div type="image" title="Shonda Rhimes and Ellen Pompeo" height="1371" width="1828" msid="87636534" hostid="261"></div><p>The "Bridgerton" creator "handed off all the reins entirely" when it comes to creative decisions to <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-sarah-drew-wrote-letter-change-april-ending-2021-9">the new "Grey's Anatomy" showrunner Krista Vernoff</a> starting in season 14, she told Variety. </p><p>"And the best reason I can say for doing that is because if I had any creative involvement, then I would have notes. And if I had notes, people would have to take those notes," she said. "And if people had to take those notes, then suddenly it's not their show anymore."</p><p>She is currently busy writing the <a href="https://www.insider.com/bridgerton-spin-off-queen-charlotte-limited-series-netflix-announcement-2021-5">"Bridgerton" prequel</a> "Queen Charlotte," so she's happy to let Vernoff take complete control over what happens in the <a href="https://www.insider.com/ellen-pompeo-fight-greys-anatomy-director-stunt-2021-9">halls of Grey-Sloan Memorial Hospital</a>. </p><h2>'Grey's Anatomy' writer <keyword id="12320123" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jamie-denbo" source="Orion">Jamie Denbo</keyword> previously told Insider that the cast consistently remains excited about "new experiences" for their characters</h2><p>Rhimes told Variety that she does have a say in when "Grey's Anatomy" will end. </p><p>"Am I the person who decides when the show is over? Yes," she said. "And I take full responsibility for that when or if everybody gets mad at me."</p><p>Even though she's given Vernoff creative control, Rhimes still seems open to the possibility of writing the medical drama's final moments. "Am I going to be the person who decides like what the final scene is? I don't know!" she admitted. </p><p>When "Grey's Anatomy" writer Jamie Denbo (who joined the show for season 18) spoke to Insider in October, she said she was surprised by how eager the cast was to tell new stories when she visited the set. </p><div type="image" title="Jamie Denbo" height="1693" width="2254" msid="87636537" hostid="261"></div><p>"The actors don't show up to this set like they've been here a hundred times before, they show up to do new work and discover new things all the time," she said. "And they always want new things and new experiences for themselves and their characters." </p><p>Denbo admitted she expected that the cast and crew "might be just going through the motions" of their jobs this long into the show's run, but that wasn't her experience on set when she wrote season 18 episode three, the episode in which <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-addison-meets-dereks-kids-ultimate-forgiveness-2021-10">Kate Walsh returned as Addison Montgomery</a>. </p><p>The cast was "still very, very committed" to finding "new colors" for their characters and new ways for the story to grow. </p><p>"Grey's Anatomy" season 18 airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. </p>

Shonda Rhimes says she's rewritten the 'Grey's Anatomy' ending 'a good eight times' but doesn't know if she'll even have a say in how it ends anymore

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="12020196" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="kate-walsh" source="Orion">Kate Walsh</keyword>'s character Addison Montgomery returned to "<keyword id="11995413" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="greys-anatomy" source="Orion">Grey's Anatomy</keyword>" on season 18 episode three. </li><li>Addison met ex-husband Derek Shepherd's kids at the end of the episode. Derek died in season 11.</li></ul><p>Kate Walsh <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-star-chandra-wilson-kept-second-job-2021-10">returned to "Grey's Anatomy"</a> as Dr. Addison Montgomery on Thursday in an emotional episode titled "Hotter than Hell." </p><p>After <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-elevator-scene-meredith-addison-jamie-denbo-interview-2021-10">Addison breaks down in an elevator with Meredith Grey</a> (Ellen Pompeo) because she doesn't feel Derek's spirit in the halls of Grey-Sloan Memorial Hospital, Meredith reminds her late husband's ex-wife: "He is here. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmncYRSfAq0">And he's in his children</a>. And they are very real."  </p><p>Meredith invites Addison to come and meet Zola, Bailey, and Ellis, and we get to see it happen on-screen in the episode's final scene. If you had dried your eyes and recovered from Addison's emotional moment in the elevator, this scene probably had you crying a new round of happier tears.</p><p>The episode's writer, <keyword id="12320123" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jamie-denbo" source="Orion">Jamie Denbo</keyword>, spoke to Insider about what it was like to pen these scenes and then watch them come to life. </p><div type="image" title="Kate Walsh Ellen Pompeo" height="2000" width="2666" msid="87136214" hostid="261"></div><h2>Addison meeting her late ex's kids for the first time is a loaded moment for both her and Meredith</h2><p>Denbo explained that meeting Meredith's children is an act of "ultimate forgiveness" between the two women who have so much complicated, and often negative, history between them.</p><p>As longtime "Grey's Anatomy" fans will recall, Meredith doesn't know that Derek is married when she gets involved with him on season one, but the affair does make the cracks in Derek and Addison's marriage deeper. Addison places blame directly on Meredith for the affair when she shakes her hand and says, "And you must be the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mhit5PXyYTA">woman who's been screwing my husband</a>."</p><p>Season 18 is a long way <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-writer-doesnt-know-why-they-didnt-kill-izzie-stevens-2021">from season one</a>. So much time has passed, and with Derek dead now, Addison and Meredith's relationship is bound to transform. "The ultimate forgiveness, the most vulnerable you can be is to allow your children to be exposed to someone," Denbo told Insider. "You don't let your children connect with someone you don't trust, love, forgive, and to me, that's the ultimate kindness." </p><div type="image" title="Kate Walsh as Addison Montgomery" height="1404" width="1872" msid="87136216" hostid="261"></div><p>Denbo and Walsh know each other from their days in comedy together and the writer, who invited Walsh to her <a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/jamie-denbo-john-ross-bowie-interview-american-princess-speechless-marriage-1215020/">wedding to "The Big Bang Theory" actor John Ross Bowie</a>, told Insider that she's happy that Addison's introduction to the Shepherd children allowed the world to see Walsh's improv skills. </p><p>"For those of you who haven't done deep dives on Kate Walsh, she's one of the funniest people on the planet," Denbo said. "And the entire ice cream at the table sequence when she's hanging out with the kids, is Kate hanging out with the kids, as Addison, she's not leaving her character." Denbo was on the "Grey's Anatomy" set for the filming of that scene and said it "was so touching and loving and funny" to watch it all unfold. </p><p>The episode's final scene is "the ultimate gesture on behalf of Meredith to say, 'We're good. The past is the past. We've loved, we've lost. Look at all we've been through,'" according to Denbo. </p><div type="image" title="Jamie Denbo" height="1693" width="2254" msid="87136221" hostid="261"></div><p>Plus, <a href="https://www.etonline.com/media/videos/kate-walsh-says-returning-to-greys-anatomy-felt-surreal-exclusive-173743">Walsh confirmed for Entertainment Tonight</a> that Addison is still happily married to Jake ("Private Practice" star Benjamin Bratt) so she probably hasn't mused about what could've been with Derek for a long time. There is truly no bad blood for the interns to talk about anymore. </p><p>"Grey's Anatomy" airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. EST on ABC.</p>

The emotional 'Grey's Anatomy' scene where Addison meets Derek's kids for the first time is an act of 'ultimate forgiveness,' the episode's writer says

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="12020196" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="kate-walsh" source="Orion">Kate Walsh</keyword> returned to "<keyword id="11995413" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="greys-anatomy" source="Orion">Grey's Anatomy</keyword>" on Thursday night. </li><li>In an emotional elevator scene, her character Addison Montgomery expresses a range of emotions.</li></ul><p>Kate Walsh <a href="https://www.insider.com/jesse-williams-open-to-greys-anatomy-return-season-18-2021-9">returned to "Grey's Anatomy"</a> as Dr. Addison Forbes Montgomery on Thursday night in an episode titled "Hotter than Hell."</p><p>While the world-class OBGYN and Maternal Fetal Medicine specialist's presence in the halls of Grey-Sloan might have intimidated residents, fans of the medical drama were reminded that while at the famed Seattle hospital, no one escapes an epic elevator meltdown at some point. </p><p>Addison's emotional elevator moment comes after she finishes a uterine transplant surgery on one of her clinical trial patients. After laughing with Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) at residents who had been frantically whispering  gossip about the women all day, Dr. Montgomery suddenly breaks down crying to because she doesn't feel Derek Shepherd's presence in the hospital that he loved as much as she expected to. </p><div type="image" title="Kate Walsh Ellen Pompeo" height="2000" width="2666" msid="87053170" hostid="261"></div><p>In an interview after the episode's airing, writer <keyword id="12320123" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="jamie-denbo" source="Orion">Jamie Denbo</keyword> told Insider that even though she wrote the words of the scene and knew what was coming, watching the moment come to life was emotional for her. "Even I cried when I saw it and I knew what the scene was," she said, "Watching it come to life was really, really really spectacular for me." </p><p>Denbo told Insider she personally believes that Addison came back to Seattle because she thought that so long after her ex-husband Derek's death, "the chapter is closed," and she would feel his presence in a positive way at Grey-Sloan because "he died in the city he loved with the people he loved."</p><p>But Addison breaks down in the elevator because she never felt that positive kind of closure. "I think she came back and instead she felt the absence and not the presence," Denbo said. </p><p>The writer credits <a href="https://www.insider.com/greys-anatomy-sarah-drew-wrote-letter-change-april-ending-2021-9">"Grey's Anatomy" showrunner Krista Vernoff</a> with helping to craft the scene because Denbo said Vernoff "wanted to make sure that Kate ran the whole range of emotions" that would come with returning to Seattle for the first time after Derek's death. "We knew that Kate and Ellen could really tackle that kind of emotional rollercoaster," she added. </p><div type="image" title="Jamie Denbo" height="1693" width="2254" msid="87053171" hostid="261"></div><p>Denbo was on set when the scene was filmed and said that the episode's director Chandra Wilson was "the perfect director for this" because she is "nurturing" and helped Walsh and Pompeo feel all of the necessary emotions "in the moment." </p><p>She added that on a <a href="https://www.insider.com/ellen-pompeo-fight-greys-anatomy-director-stunt-2021-9">long-running show like "Grey's Anatomy" </a>with such a big cast,"there's something great about doing a little mini one-act play in an elevator," because the chance to explore raw emotions like that can be rare. </p><p>Denbo couldn't divulge any details about Addison's potential future in Seattle, but as for why the surgeon waited for so long to come back, the writer mused, "When Addison heard about Derek, she probably went to the beach by herself, cried, and looked at the ocean" remembering her time with him instead of going to a funeral and "causing more pain." </p><p>"Grey's Anatomy" airs Thursday nights at 8 p.m. ET on <keyword id="11896774" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="abc" source="Orion">ABC</keyword>. </p>

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Shonda Rhimes feels 'embarrassed for television' because of how groundbreaking 'Grey's Anatomy' was in its diverse casting

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Shonda Rhimes says she's rewritten the 'Grey's Anatomy' ending 'a good eight times' but doesn't know if she'll even have a say in how it ends anymore

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The emotional 'Grey's Anatomy' scene where Addison meets Derek's kids for the first time is an act of 'ultimate forgiveness,' the episode's writer says

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The 'Grey's Anatomy' elevator scene with Addison and Meredith was so emotional, even the writer cried seeing it come to life

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