‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Season 17 Premiere Brings Back Patrick Dempsey in Shocking Moment

Alright, who’s ready to talk about what happened on Grey’s Anatomy last night? In the final minutes of the Grey’s Season 17 premiere, Meredith Grey passed out in the hospital parking lot, only to have a vision of… her late husband Derek, aka McDreamy. Talk about a Grey’s Anatomy shocker for the ages!

As the producers and stars have been teasing for months, Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 will be heavily influenced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and that became apparent in the final moments of the season premiere. After feeling blah all episode, Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) suddenly collapses in the hospital parking lot, and the show cuts to a dream sequence of her standing on a beach with — who else? — Derek (Patrick Dempsey), who died from injuries sustained in a car crash in the Season 11 finale.

Dempsey’s cameo, his first since he exited the ABC drama in 2015, immediately shocked fans, but it also spells bad news for Meredith. As we’ve seen in previous seasons of Grey’s Anatomy, seeing visions of dead lovers is never good (hey, Izzie), and it’s likely that the drama is hinting that Meredith has fallen ill with COVID-19.

In a statement released after the two-hour season premiere, Grey’s Anatomy showrunner Krista Vernoff said that McDreamy’s cameo had two distinct purposes. “The most important task we had this season was to honor the reality of this global pandemic and the impact it’s having — particularly on healthcare workers,” she said. “Along with that we had to come up with creative ways to allow our show to still be fun and romantic and provide some escapism. Enter Patrick Dempsey.”

“The beach motif — which will continue beyond the premiere — provided a way for us to live outside the pandemic even for a little while here and there. And Derek’s return provided pure joy for us, for Meredith, and for the fans,” the statement continues. “We hope our show inspires you to wear your masks to protect them and each other. As Derek Shepherd would say, ‘It’s a beautiful day to save lives.'”

The Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 premiere is available to stream on Hulu. New episodes of Grey’s Anatomy air every Thursday at 9/8c on ABC.

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