Earlier Tuesday, ABC President Paul Lee additionally addressed the polarizing option to kill off Dempsey’s character.
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The death of Patrick Dempsey’s Derek “McDreamy” Shepherd in a horrific vehicle accident that played out over two April 2015 episodes was a hard one for many fans to handle, but Lee said he was pleased with what a talking point it became. Patrick obviously has a lot of interests outside. “And so as painful as it was for me as a storyteller, because I never really thought it could happen, the only way to preserve what felt true to me was that Derek was going to have to die in order for that love to remain honest”, Rhimes said. According to ABC’s Paul Lee, he has already seen the mapped out plan for a Derek-free Grey’s Anatomy, and apparently it looks good.
“It was great, wasn’t it?” he said of the demise of Dempsey’s character, which dramatically shook up the Season 11 storyline and the hearts of fans. Hes very big in motosport. Weve seen the pitch for Greys next season. But rumors continue to swirl that Shonda Rhimes actually fired Patrick Dempsey. “(Executive producer) Shonda Rhimes decided writing him off was the way to go”.
Despite the continuing fallout from the death of a major character, “Grey’s Anatomy” is going for a “much lighter tone” in its 12th season. Perhaps the “reinvention” may lend itself to a better balance between professional and personal drama. If only TV writers could just create an alternate universe we could all live in with our favorite characters, who do and say exactly what we want them to all the time.
“We have no reason to suspect that “Grey’s Anatomy” won’t go on for many, many years to come”, he said. You’re going to see some classic Bailey stuff, some classic Bailey behavior. Either Derek was going to walk out on Meredith and leave her high and dry, but then that would say that the love wasn’t true over the last 11 years of the show…that would be untenable….He couldn’t be the bad guy and walk out. The theme is rebirth, which I’m exited about for all the characters but really for Meredith.
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This could mean fans should expect a nasty jostling for position in Season 12 of Grey’s Anatomy led by Dr. Bailey as she hustles for the coveted position at Grey Sloan Memorial hospital. So it is for these people and in the spirit of resilience I am honored And excited to tell the story of how Meredith goes on in the face of what feels like the impossible.
