In the season 19 winter premiere, “I’ll Follow the Sun,” Meredith Grey, played by Ellen Pompeo, bid farewell to Grey Sloan Memorial after over 20 years and more than 400 episodes of serving as the show’s host before her family moved to Boston. Pompeo made her second-to-last appearance this season on the episode from February 23.
She won’t make another appearance until the May season finale. Meredith Grey, the resident doctor who has been portrayed by Pompeo since the much-loved Shonda Rhimes-created series initially debuted in 2005, will now end her run as a series regular. It also starts to see if Grey’s can carry on without its star.
It was revealed that Pompeo would have a smaller role on the long-running ABC series for season 19 before the midseason finale. Pompeo and the Grey’s staff disclosed that Meredith would only appear onscreen for a total of eight episodes this season after signing on to star in and executive produce a limited series for Hulu (also a member of the Disney family).
As the winter finale has already aired, Meredith won’t be seen by viewers again until the May 26 season 19 finale. Pompeo is still an executive producer on Grey’s and a voice star, while Meredith will continue to narrate the program in her distinctive voiceovers.
In its 19th season, Grey’s is still popular with Disney and is the longest-running primetime medical drama in television history. Although Pompeo has been upfront about her desire to do more Grey’s, and Rhimes has always maintained that there wouldn’t be Grey’s Anatomy without Meredith Grey, Pompeo’s cutting back and the departure of showrunner Krista Vernoff occur as the series waits to be renewed for season 20.
She said in her Instagram post announcing the decision, amid a grateful message to the fans:
“This isn’t your first time on the rollercoaster… you know the show must go on and I’ll definitely be back to visit,”
Yet Meredith’s final episode undoubtedly left the door open for the character’s plot to develop further, indicating that she will dominate the rest of the season. It also gave her choices for returning to Seattle for a potential 20th season, if the Boston plan fails.
Meredith’s friends and colleagues threw the cherished surgeon a farewell party after she announced her decision to move her family to Boston, where she will continue her ground-breaking work on a treatment for Alzheimer’s, in the movie “I’ll Follow the Sun,” written by Vernoff and directed by co-star Debbie Allen.
As viewers watched Meredith and her three children board the plane, including Zola (Aniela Gumbs), whose early brilliance cemented the family’s transfer, the episode reaffirmed Meredith’s resolve to stick with her decision. During the goodbye party, however, Meredith made it clear to her fellow doctors that she plans to pop in for visits. She said:
“I’m only going to Boston and you know I’ll probably be here next week,”
Also, Scott Speedman’s Dr. Nick Marsh and her romance subplot were left unresolved. After her house was set on fire in the midseason finale, Meredith and Nick reportedly fell out after she told him she loved him and received no response. Nick called Meredith to tell her that he loves her and has loved her ever since they met even though he was unable to meet her before her plane took off.
When they were leaving, Meredith informed Nick she couldn’t hear him properly and hung up the phone, leaving their relationship on a cliffhanger. His remarks were welcomed with a smile. An answer to that ending could be gleaned from the episode’s title — clearly a nod to Cristina Yang’s (Sandra Oh) prior advice to Meredith about Derek (Patrick Dempsey):
“Don’t let what he wants eclipse what you need. He’s very dreamy, but he’s not the sun. You are!”
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The episode concluded with three young doctors from the show’s current batch of interns—Alexis Floyd, Niko Terho, and Midori Francis—moving into Meredith’s now-vacant home, giving viewers a full-circle wink. The Grey’s actors embraced the episode as a farewell, paying tribute to Pompeo and Meredith Grey on social media, whatever the future may hold.
“What a journey these 19 seasons have been! Wouldn’t trade them (or you) for the world. Beyond excited for your next chapter. See you later, Dr. Grey.”