Shonda Rhimes News

Get ready for pulse-pounding end to 2009 and new beginnings in 2010.

That's according to Shonda Rhimes herself, and we couldn't be happier.

“It’s starting to get really exciting, especially as we head towards these episodes that end the year and start off the new year,” the Grey's Anatomy creator and executive producer told TV Guide Magazine. “We’ve got some really great stuff coming.”

Now that Owen and Christina are a couple, will the new resident surgeon Teddy Altman - a.k.a. “cardio god” (played by guest star Kim Raver) - put a heart-stopping wrench in their fledgling romance? Rhimes urges fans to stay tuned on that front.

“Yes, but not how you’d expect,” revealed Rhimes. “I think everyone assumes it’s going to go one way. It’s a very different story than we’ve ever told before.”

Meanwhile, Meredith and Derek will continue to take the audience on a roller coaster ride of typical emotional highs and lows, yet even more challenges await.

“I think a lot of what’s going on is watching them come into their own as doctors [and] watching what goes on between them in the hospital,” said Rhimes.

With the Chief falling off the wagon once again, leaving his wife’s imagination to run wild - and straight down to the hospital where she accuses Dr. Bailey of having an affair with him - the repercussions will go a lot deeper than just the bottom of the bottle.

“That’s going to get a little complicated,” she said, promising more info in coming episodes. “That’s going to get more complicated than anybody expects.”

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Last night, we saw new mom Ellen Pompeo back at Grey’s Anatomy. The show is moving Derek and Meredith back where they belong: front and center. That’s the good news.

Here comes the bad, according to EW: “They will face relationship challenges, many of them work-oriented, in the second half of the season,” reveals creator Shonda Rhimes.

Rhimes insists, though, that this latest obstacle will not result in the newly married-via-Post-It pair breaking up - a rumor that has been making the rounds on the Internet.

Derek and Meredith aren't breaking up ... but there'll be bumps along the way.

“I don’t know how many times [I] can say, ‘Derek and Meredith are together forever’ and have anybody hear it,” the  executive producer says. “I can only reassure so much."

“In order to [produce] a drama you need to have some drama,” Rhimes adds.

“Whether or not two people are meant for one another and will remain together doesn’t mean that things aren’t going to happen to challenge their relationship.”

What do you think? Are you okay with watching the MerDer relationship evolve even if it means some difficult times? And what do you think these new obstacles will be?

If you've watched Grey's Anatomy this season, specifically the past few weeks, you know that the future of Alex and Izzie is very much up in the air. What's next for the married couple?

Entertainment Weekly's Michael Ausiello has some info on that straight from the woman who created Grey's Anatomy. And while cryptic, she's not entirely negative about them ...

Q: Please give us some scoop on Alex and Izzie on Grey’s Anatomy. Is there any good news for them coming up at all? I’m absolutely dying here!

A: My new BFF Shonda Rhimes says there are “some shocking things” in store for the newlyweds during the second half of the current sixth season.

“The next part of [their] journey,” she teases, “is going to be pretty interesting.”

I don’t know about you, but I get a little scared when Shonda throws words around like “pretty” and “interesting.” What do you think this means?

For those of you who don’t follow Shonda Rhimes on Twitter, Grey’s Anatomy's creator and executive producer shared a picture of Patrick Dempsey on the show's set today.

Shonda wanted to send out a “Hello!” from the show's leading man himself and put out a little call for support for the new Dempsey Center for Cancer Hope and Healing.

So take a look at Patrick Dempsey’s handsomeness below, then follow the link to his charity organization. Everyone wins. It’s for a very good cause, we think you'll agree ...

With two months to go until the premiere, Grey's Anatomy creator and executive producer Shonda Rhimes is opening up about the transitional new season ahead, as well as how Ellen Pompeo's pregnancy fits into the mix going forward.

Here are excerpts from EW's spoiler Q&A today ...

Q: Hey, do you have any Grey's Anatomy news that doesn't involve George or Izzie?

A: Yes - the entire cast will be following T.R. Knight out the door. At least series creator Shonda Rhimes is braced for them to. Eventually. She got to thinking about it both because of Knight's departure and Ellen Pompeo's impending maternity leave.

“It's going to be tricky,” Rhimes says. “Ellen is incredibly optimistic and somehow thinks she will be back and ready to rock 'n' roll. [But] I have a child, so I know that that's not true. [So] we have a lovely story [on deck] that will take us into her maternity leave."

"And we have plans for some really interesting stand-alone episodes for [while she's gone]. But we're heading towards the future of the show and eventually, unless we are extremely lucky, everybody's going to go. That's what the end of Season 5 taught me."

"So we're looking at, How do we mess with that structure now while we have everybody and figure out ways in which, 'What would we do without Ellen? What would we do if we had an episode without Patrick Dempsey?' So Season 6 is important."

"A lot of shows don't make it because they don't know how to transition."

Can Rhimes envision Grey's Anatomy someday going on with Pompeo (and Mer) completely out of the picture?! "I don't know" she hedges. "I clearly want Meredith Grey on the show for as long as Ellen Pompeo wants to be on the show; that's not even a question."

"But I think that there's a possibility of [her leaving the series good at some point]. I haven't even thought that far. That's the one blank spot I have in my head. I can't really picture Mer Grey not appearing on the show. But [at least] we have Lexie Grey."

But would anyone watch Lexie Grey's Anatomy?

Q: Will Ellen Pompeo's pregnancy be written into Grey's Anatomy?

A: No. "Ellen is pregnant, but Meredith is not," Rhimes says. "Meredith wouldn't be pregnant."

Q: Now that Grey's Anatomy has finally started production, you got anything?

A: Look for Owen's PTSD to possibly flare up in the September 24 opener. I say this because a Grey's Anatomy mole says that Seattle Grace's go-to shrink, Amy Madigan, will appear in the second hour of the two-hour premiere.

As we reported last week, the final scene in Grey's Anatomy's fifth season finale was supposed to feature Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Denny Duquette, who was seen throughout the season, as Izzie's heavenly escort as the ailing resident's life hung in the balance.

However, series creator and executive Shonda Rhimes had an epiphany and decided to use T.R. Knight's George O'Malley in the parting shot-cliffhanger instead

According to Entertainment Weekly, having wrapped filming for the season, T.R. Knight went ahead and shaved his head, believing he was done for the summer.

That posed a new problem - but ultimately a solution - for Rhimes.

"[Director] Rob Corn calls me up and goes, 'What do we do?'" Rhimes said, before she remembered George enlisted in the Army right before being struck by a bus.

Luckily, the workaround quickly came to Rhimes when she thought of that fact. "I said, 'I know. Put him in a military uniform!' It wasn't a big amazing plan I had."

The climactic, season-ending scene, which left the two characters literally in limbo and viewers on the edge of their seats, left Knight with a bag of emotions as well.

"It was brilliant of Shonda to put George in the dress blues," said Knight, who will not be returning to Grey's Anatomy next season. "It was such a powerful image."

Katherine Heigl, who plays Izzie, was in Atlanta shooting a film and was not present for the big re-shoot. So to ensure Heigl and Knight's expressions were in sync, T.R. Knight picked his BFF's brain over the phone before stepping in front of the camera.

"I was like, 'What did you do in that scene?'" the Grey's Anatomy actor said, laughing. "It's nice when you've worked with someone for five years. There's a shorthand."

Katherine Heigl was worried over whether the switcheroo could be pulled off.

"Katie called me and was like, 'Are my expressions going to match his? Is it going to work?" Rhimes said. "And I was like, 'I promise you it's going to be perfect.'"

It was.

We know filming for Grey's Anatomy is officially underway because Shonda Rhimes herself Tweeted as much. She posted this picture of the lovely Sara Ramirez to prove it!

Shonda also Twittered props to the show's Emmy nominees and said that when Meredith and Derek scenes begin filming, maybe she'll post a picture of it for us! Woo hoo!

These excerpts from Michael Ausiello's spoiler Q&A at EW.com today are not really Grey's Anatomy spoilers. They are, however, quite interesting in that they relate to the climactic scene of Season Five and how that came about. See below ...

Q: Any Grey's Anatomy scoop?

A: Remember the haunting image of an Army-clad George waiting outside the elevator for Izzie in the season finale? Well, it wasn't supposed to be George standing there. The scene was originally shot with Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Denny in the role of Izzie's heavenly escort.

But as Grey's boss Shonda Rhimes explains, "I received the first cut [of the finale] on a Friday and something didn't feel right. All weekend long something was bugging me."

"And then I woke up Monday morning and it hit me, 'My God, it's George! When the elevator opens, it should be George O'Malley that we see.'"

There was just one problem ... actually, two problems. To find out what they were and how they got resolved, the new Entertainment Weekly issue has the details.

Q: How much longer do we have to wait for Grey's Anatomy scoop?

A: One of the two problems involved Katherine Heigl's location at the time of Shonda's epiphany. That's all you're getting. You have to pick up the magazine.

Q: Anything on Grey's Anatomy?

A: The other problem involved what T.R. Knight did to his head after production wrapped. Now I'm really done.

Q: Please give us something on Grey's Anatomy?

A: The second problem involving T.R. Knight's head eventually became the solution. Okay, now I'm really really done. Get the rest of the scoop in this week's EW!

Your comments and theories are welcome below.

T.R. Knight isn't the only Grey's Anatomy name involved in theater work.

Chandra Wilson, who plays Dr. Miranda Bailey, has been starring in Chicago this summer, delighting audiences in the famous role of Matron “Mama” Morton in the hit musical.

At one of her recent shows, Wilson received a special visitor - none other than Grey's Anatomy creator / producer Shonda Rhimes. Here's Chandra with her boss backstage ...

After months of speculation surrounding the fate of Grey’s Anatomy’s George O’Malley, T.R. Knight, who plays the lovable doctor, is breaking his silence about his departure.

“The decision to leave Grey’s Anatomy was not an easy one for me to make,” T.R. Knight said in a statement today. “I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to play this character and will miss my fellow cast and crew very much."

"I continue to wish them the very best, and wholeheartedly thank all of the Grey's Anatomy fans who have supported me and the show with such passion and enthusiasm.”

T.R. Knight was an integral Grey's Anatomy cast member for five seasons.

Producer Shonda Rhimes simultaneously released her own statement, saying:

“I think I speak for the entire Grey’s Anatomy family when I say we wish T.R. Knight the best in his future endeavors. He is an incredibly talented actor and a person whose strength of character is admired by all of us.”

While T.R. Knight may be happy to depart from the show following a season of sparse screen time for George, co-star James Pickens, Jr., says the actor will be missed.

“He’s a good man, and a great actor,” Pickens, who plays Chief Richard Webber, says. “We have lots of laughs. I’m going to miss his sense of humor.”

The official confirmation comes just hours after word leaked that Knight's co-star and real-life BFF Katherine Heigl will be sticking around next season.

Knight is currently in talks to headline a Broadway revival of Lend Me a Tenor.

All of us here at Grey's Anatomy Insider would like to say thank you to T.R. Knight for his contributions to our favorite show over five seasons and over a hundred episodes. Best of luck wherever the future takes you, T.R.!