Grey’s Anatomy Cast Overhaul: Meet the Newcomers Scrubbing In for Ellen Pompeo
It may feel like a whole new hospital, come fall.
When last we visited Grey Sloan, it almost seemed like the whole world was being upended. And in these chaotic days, surprising us is no mean feat, let alone on a show that’s been around for almost two decades! But somehow, Grey’s Anatomy pulled it off when it ended season 18.
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First off, there was Teddy and Owen, both of whom resigned from Grey Sloan and went on the run with their kids. Turns out, the authorities weren’t thrilled with Owen helping dying veterans pass on their own terms. Then there was the surprise when Bailey decided she’d had enough of being the hospital’s chief of staff… and handed the job off to Meredith!
But maybe the biggest shocker happened with the residency program. It’s been the bedrock of the show since day one, but when this past season wrapped, it was shut down! The last we saw Schmitt, Helm, Zander and Mabel, they were cleaning out their lockers. We’ve got a slew of questions in store as we get ready to dive into Season 19, chief among them figuring out who’s in and who’s out!
Schmitt’s return seems like a safe bet, seeing as how Jake Borelli is a series regular. But as for the other residents, they’re anyone’s guess. To make things even murkier, we’re about to be introduced to a whole slew of new faces as Grey Sloan gets a fresh batch of first-year students.
Time to start judging the new surgeons!
Credit: ABC
First up is Niko Terho playing Lucas Adams. No, he’s not playing the actor who was Days of Our Lives‘ Tripp! This Lucas Adams is a medical student coming from a long line of surgeons, which has naturally left him with a chip on his shoulder to prove himself worthy of the family profession. (Fun fact: Terho was Borelli’s leading man in the Freeform movie The Thing About Harry. Fun fact No. 2: He rocks a towel like no one since McSteamy. But we digress… )
Then there’s Adelaide Kane, late of the Aussie soap Neighbours. She’s playing Jules Millin, a doc-in-training who had to grow up way too fast in a family of drug-addled hippies. Next comes The Sex Lives of College Girls alum Midori Francis’ Mika Yasuda suffering (or is it thriving?) from middle-child syndrome as she sets out to make a name for herself away from her eight siblings.
Inventing Anna scene stealer Alexis Floyd looks like she’ll be bringing some drama to the group as Simone Griffin, a Seattle native who’s more than a little reluctant to work at Grey Sloan thanks to some sort of painful personal history with the hospital.
Finally, what would the residents do if they didn’t have a hyper-competitive student in their midst to keep them on their toes? Glee grad Harry Shum is filling that role as Daniel “Blue” Kwan, a student who’s brilliant and generous… but also impatient and driven by a burning need to be the best.
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As for what fate might befall Owen and Teddy, we’ll just have to wait and see. And while it certainly seems like Meredith will have her hands full as the new chief of staff — especially if any of last year’s residents stick around — that doesn’t mean we’ll be seeing a whole lot of Ellen Pompeo. As TVLine reports, while the actress isn’t leaving the show, she will only be appearing in a handful of episodes this coming season, though she’ll remain as the narrator and as an executive producer.
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No matter how you slice it, though, it looks like we’ll be in for quite a few changes when Grey’s Anatomy returns on Thursday, Oct. 6!
Check out our photo gallery of daytime’s 25 greatest doctors of all time and see who could give the Grey Sloan folks a run for their money.
Video: YouTube/TVLine
