Photo: Liliane Lathan/ABC
Nothing will impact the ending ofGrey’sAnatomynow, according toShonda Rhimes.
The series creator tells PEOPLE the ending has changed so much since her initial plan, that there’s no longer a set ending to the series. Though years ago Rhimes, 52, admitted she’d planned the show’s end in advance, the 19-season series has no end in sight — and therefore, no planned conclusion.
“I’ve had 15 different endings for this show, and the show just keeps going. So anything that I had ever planned is no longer even mildly relevant,” Rhimes says.
She adds that it was a very long time ago that she had any ending in sight. “I think maybe eight seasons ago I stopped thinking about it. There’s nothing that’s changed because there was nothing there to change.”
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Rhimes' reveal comes as starEllen Pompeohastaken a step back from the series in season 19. The actress who plays Meredith Grey, is only slated to appear in eight episodes of the current season.
In 2021, Rhimes said she may not even be the person who writes the ending forGrey’s Anatomy, as now, she has a whole list of other projects under her belt — including Netflix’s megahit Regency romanceBridgerton.
As she’s signed on for aa massive deal with Netflix, Rhimes said she may not “be the person who decides, like, what the final scene is,” in a conversation withVariety’s Show Woman of the Yearissue.
“If you’d ask me this question three years ago, or prior toKrista [Vernoff]arriving, I would have said, ‘Yes, I can tell you exactly how it’s going to end,'” said Rhimes, who just this Tuesday released the bookInside BridgertonwithBridgertonco-creator Betsy Beers. “But once you hand off the ball for real, it’s just different. So I don’t know yet.”
Rhimes did confirm she’ll be the one to call for the curtain to close when it’s time to end the medical drama.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Grey’s Anatomyseason 19 airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.
source: people.com
