Patrick Dempsey has been getting a lot of attention lately after his surprise appearance on his show, Grey’s Anatomy. The actor has reflected on the fan response while making an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
He opened up about his very recent and shocking cameo on Grey’s Anatomy. His character was killed off five years ago after which this is the first time fans got a glimpse of McDreamy.
Patrick reflected how the response has been “incredibly overwhelming and very moving”. The actor talked about the reunion of him and co-star Ellen Pompeo and how they got together earlier this year to brainstorm. He shared how the duo discussed how to get people to wear masks and make an impact during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The star then shared that while discussing this, the idea to bring him back on the show came into being. “What a great opportunity for people and how great it would be for the fans, really, to see everybody reunited in this sort of bizarre way,” he said.
Patrick also revealed how hard it was to keep the secret. He shared how nobody knew about it other than the network ABC; and some people which included showrunner, Krista Vernoff, and Ellen herself. The actor shared, “And then we started talking to the directors; which would be Debbie Allen — who’s amazing — and Kevin McKidd, who’s one of the directors that I worked with. And that was it.”
He further added that no one knew until he showed up on set that day. The artist further shared their fears of someone clicking a picture and putting it out there. However, he said they managed to keep it a secret which he described as “pretty phenomenal.”
The Return Of McDreamy
The long-running medical drama has brought one of its beloved characters back from the dead. The shocking ending came in the form of none other than Derek Shepherd, aka everybody’s McDreamy. The character is Meredith’s late husband who had died back in Season 11.
The return of Patrick Dempsey after 2015 has fans going into a frenzy. The last few seconds of the premiere gave us the shock of seeing his character come back. The sequence was led on after Meredith, played by Ellen Pompeo, was found lying unconscious outside the Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.
Before she was found unconscious; the premiere showed the toll the ongoing coronavirus pandemic had taken on her mental, emotional, and physical well-being. After this, Meredith was seen on a beach watching the waves as a familiar voice called her from behind.
Meredith appears shocked as she stands up only to see another figure at a distance. That figure was of course none other than Derek, played by Patrick. Krista Vernoff explained the surprise for fans saying that McDreamy came back to bring happiness to the fans of the show.
The showrunner explained from a writer’s perspective, the surprise happened because it was her job to find a way to bring joy during this pandemic. She said it was a way to bring “joy, escape and fan candy”.
“We Knew That Coming Together Would Be A Little Ray Of Light”- Ellen
Krista said, “We give them romance, and we give them humor; and we give them joy, and a lot of that is lacking for the medical community in this pandemic. And so, I was walking on the beach one day, and I was like, what if there’s a Meredith dream motif?”
The showrunner further explained that she had been imagining a beach motif throughout the season and that’s when she called Ellen. The actress not only stars as the main lead but is also a producer of the show. Krista said she asked Ellen about bringing back a character who is dead. She said it would be fun for fans to watch.
Vernoff said it was actually Ellen’s plan for bringing back Derek. She explained, “Even in my most excitable dream life, that thought hadn’t occurred to me as an option, and there it was”. Both the actors live in Malibu, California as they took a hike near their homes for the golden sequence.
Ellen explained that the idea just came to her so she asked him about considering coming back and being a part of the storytelling this season. She said, “There’s just so much darkness, and we knew that coming together would be a little ray of light. And so, I think we had the same idea, at the core, to want to help people and bring a smile to people’s faces. So, he loved the idea, and we were just so excited, and we had a ball filming it.”
“I Know That They’ve Been Wanting Us To Get Back Together”- Patrick
Meanwhile, Patrick said they hadn’t spoken or been together for a while. He said it was a great opportunity to catch up and think about what could they do for the frontline responders. The actor shared that he had been keeping track of what Grey’s had been doing.
He shared, “I’ve been tracking what Grey’s had been doing with giving masks and making sure that people had the right equipment; and it came from that place. ‘OK, what can we do to make people feel better; to give some comfort in this time of uncertainty,’ and that’s how it began. And it was really a wonderful experience to go back, to work with [director/EP] Debbie [Allen].”
The actor further explained that the whole atmosphere has changed and working at the beach and meeting the team again was a healing process for him. Patrick further added that it was rewarding and a lot of fun and hopes that fans also feel the same. He said, “I know that they’ve been wanting us to get back together, and I think this will satisfy a lot of people, and surprise a lot of people, hopefully.”
And for the fans of the medical drama, this is not the only appearance we get of McDreamy. If you haven’t watched the trailer for the next episode then let me tell you; we will get more scenes of the beloved TV couple together. The next episode titled, My Happy Ending will air next Thursday and it is directed by Kevin McKidd, who plays Owen Hunt.
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