Grey’s Anatomy ABC
Fans were shocked when Patrick Dempsey returned to his role as Derek Shepherd to reunite with Meredith Grey for the season 17 premiere of Grey’s Anatomy.
Kevin McKidd, who is a director on the show and plays Owen Hunt, opened up about the special appearance and hinted that there’s more to come. He opened up that the iconic scene where McDreamy and Meredith Grey reunite on the beach and shared that the directors even kept that moment a secret from the cast.
“It was amazing. I mean, we were shocked! Because in the script that we had, it had things like Meredith’s mother [Ellis Grey] would be on the beach talking to her about life. And we’re all like, ‘This seems weird,’ so they kept it a secret from us for a long time,” McKidd shared. “That’s probably why it stayed a secret because they didn’t tell the actors for a long time!”
“But I sort of had to keep that secret so tight. That was really hard. I couldn’t tell my wife. I couldn’t tell anyone,” he recalled. “But I’m glad it came off because I think it gave — we’ve all been through so much with COVID, it was like a huge Christmas gift to the fans. And I think it was worth all the effort.”
McKidd shared that Dempsey’s unexpected return brought back old memories and was nostalgic for everyone. “I was like, ‘Wow, I can’t believe this, that we’re getting an opportunity to do this, you know?'” he shared. “And I gotta say, those days down by the beach were very… it was almost like being at summer camp. It was this really nostalgic, warm feeling. It felt very cathartic and healing, and we all got to reminisce about all those years that we worked together. It was really, truly lovely.”
He also shared that this isn’t the last fans will see of McDreamy on season 17. When asked if this week’s episode is the last time fans will see Demsey, he replied, “I can’t tell you that! I value my job too much. All I can say is you have not seen the last of him. That’s what I will say and whatever does come, it’s going to be… What you saw last week that everybody freaked out about is just a tiny, it’s the tip of the iceberg of what’s to come. You’ll have to watch.”