Yes, "Grey's Anatomy" Is Already Up To Season 19, And Here's Everything We Know About The New Season

    Buckle up for another rollercoaster of a season.

    Jemima Skelley
    by Jemima Skelley

    BuzzFeed Contributor

    Here we are once again, heading into a new season of Grey's Anatomy. Against all odds, we've made it to Season 19 – so here's everything you should know heading into the new season.

    Meredith Grey and Richard Webber stand in the OR gallery looking down through a window
    Liliane Lathan / ABC via Getty Images

    FYI the season premieres on Thursday, October 6, and will be available to stream on Hulu the next day.

    1. Ellen Pompeo will only be in eight episodes.

    Ellen Pompeo poses in a blue dress on a blue background
    Mike Rosenthal / ABC via Getty Images

    Last month it was announced that Ellen Pompeo will star in and exec produce an untitled orphan-themed limited series at Hulu. That means that she won't have quite so much time to spend on set at Grey Sloan.

    Meredith will only be in eight episodes of Grey's Season 19. Right now we don't know if those eps will be spread out over the season or bunched all together at the beginning. 

    2. But don't worry, she's not fully leaving the show — Ellen will still narrate all the episodes and serve as an executive producer.

    Meredith Grey, in a business shirt and lab coat, stands in a room talking to people
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    "I spent two decades of my career on that show — it’s my heart and soul. I’ll never truly be gone as long as that show is on the air," she told Deadline. 

    3. As a result, it looks like Dr. Nick Marsh won't be in the show as much either.

    Dr Marsh in a green t-shirt is looking off-screen
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    Scott Speedman, who played Meredith's love interest through Season 18, has had his role reduced to "recurring." You might remember that last season's finale ended with the pair having a fight, with Meredith telling him to go home to Minnesota. 

    4. But everyone's fave, Addison Montgomery, will be back in a significant way.

    Meredith Grey, Addison Shepherd and Amelia Shepherd are walking down a hospital hallway, all wearing lab coats
    ABC

    After she appeared in Season 18 as a guest star to assist with a uterine transplant, Addison is back in Seattle. Though it's not yet clear what she'll be doing at Grey Sloane, Kate Walsh is listed as a recurring character for Season 19.

    5. Meredith is hard at work trying to reboot the residency program after it was shut down in last season's finale.

    View this video on YouTube
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    Based on the first-look trailer, Meredith has recruited five new interns who otherwise wouldn't be offered jobs, and given them a second chance. 

    6. We have a new class of interns.

    7. Glee alum Harry Shum Jr. has been cast as Dr. Daniel Kwan.

    Harry Shum Jr. on the set of Grey's Anatomy wearing scrubs and a lab coat
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    According to Deadline, the character is "sharp-witted, impatient and brilliant. He is generous by nature but competitive to a fault, naturally gifted, and used to winning at everything. A family crisis interfered with his career plans and now he’s got a lot to prove."

    8. Alexis Floyd will play Dr. Simone Griffin.

    Alexis Floyd on the set of Grey's Anatomy wearing scrubs and a lab coat
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    You might recognize her from Inventing Anna. Dr. Griffin is apparently a "funny, whip-smart, high achiever with a complicated family dynamic. She grew up in Seattle, but never wanted to work at Grey Sloan because of a painful personal history with the hospital."

    9. Adelaide Kane is taking on the role of Dr. Jules Millin.

    Adelaide Kane on the set of Grey's Anatomy wearing casual clothes and looking incredulous
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    The character "was raised by drug addled artist/hippies and somehow emerged as the only real grown-up in the family. She’s not afraid to break the rules to save a life, and sometimes it gets her in trouble."

    (Sounds like Izzy Stevens 2.0 to me.)

    And if the trailer is anything to go by, she slept with Link before even starting at Grey Sloane.

    10. Niko Terho will play Dr. Lucas Adams.

    Niko Terho on the set of Grey's Anatomy wearing scrubs and a yellow ER gown
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    He comes from a family of surgeons, but is "the charming black sheep of his family. Likable to a fault, he has a great mind, but doesn’t have the grades to match." 

    11. Midori Francis is coming on board as Dr. Mika Yasuda.

    Midori Francis on the set of Grey's Anatomy wearing scrubs and a lab coat
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    The resident is a middle child with eight siblings and is "dealing with overwhelming student loans from med school. But she’s scrappy and confident she can make it in the program and rise to the top."

    12. Meredith is now the interim Chief of Surgery.

    The actors who play Webber, Meredith, and Bailey posing on a set of stairs for promo photos
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    We can expect the first few episodes of the show to be about Meredith dealing with the fallout of Bailey and Webber leaving the hospital – but it doesn't look like she'll stick around in the role for long. 

    13. Webber and Bailey may have quit their jobs BUT they're still series regulars.

    Miranda Bailey with her hair in braids wearing casual clothes at Grey Sloan hospital
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    So don't worry, we'll still be seeing a lot of them. 

    14. Teddy and Owen are on the run.

    Owen and Teddy sit on a couch looking at eachother
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    After it was revealed that Owen gave life-ending drugs to a war veteran, he and Teddy are now on the run from the police. Both actors are still listed as series regulars, though, so surely they'll be back in Seattle ASAP. Bad news for anyone who was hoping to finally see the back of Owen, tbh. 

    15. Filming started in July.

    Caterina Scorsone @caterinatweets

    Memorizing lines for #1901. It’s here. There will be updates. The classic cast is ready and revving. The new cast additions are exciting and gorgeous. Inside and out. Here we go.

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    @caterinatweets / Via Twitter: @caterinatweets

    Caterina Scorsone, who plays Amelia, shared a tweet in July about learning her lines for the season premiere. Kate Walsh (Addison) also shared a TikTok confirming that she would be filming this season.

    16. It's not likely to be the last season of Grey's.

    Bailey stands in the operating theatre wearing a mask and a scrub hat, while two men operate on a body
    Liliane Lathan / ABC via Getty Images

    The future of Grey's Anatomy has been in question for what feels like a decade, but it's such a money-maker that ABC doesn't seem to want to it shut down any time soon. 

    17. Though Ellen Pompeo kinda wants it to be the last.

    Meredith Grey wearing a black business shirt from a scene in Grey's Anatomy
    ABC / Via youtube.com

    "I've been trying to focus on convincing everybody that it should end," she said during an interview with Insider. "I feel like I'm the super naive one who keeps saying, 'But what's the story going to be, what story are we going to tell?'"