After over two decades, ABC's longest-running series on the air is officially marking the end of an era. The rise of streaming has resulted in much shorter TV shows, with projects barely making it to 10 seasons despite their popularity. This is actually one of the aspects of network TV that undoubtedly beats its competition. For those who want a longer form of storytelling, which allows for more time for proper character development and overarching narratives, traditional broadcasters have a lot to offer.
The longest-running shows on the small screen are all from basic channels. CBS has NCIS, which has been on the air since 2003 and is about to enter its 24th season. Meanwhile, NBC's fall 2026 schedule has Dick Wolf's Law & Order season 26 and Law & Order: SVU season 28. ABC has its own two-decade-long show in Grey's Anatomy. The Shonda Rhimes-created series separates itself from its peers by being the only medical series to cross the 20th season. With over 460 episodes, it has changed countless times, but its next evolution will officially leave its original premise in the past.
Grey's Anatomy Is Officially Moving On From Meredith & Derek
Technically, Grey's Anatomy is a medical procedural, and it continues to honor that with weekly cases involving the new and established faces at Grey Sloan. However, it's also no secret that a vital part of its storytelling, as well as success, is rooted in its romances, especially Meredith and Derek's. The pair's love story was the backbone of the show's golden years, with the development of their relationship being at the core of the narrative until Patrick Dempsey's exit in Grey's Anatomy season 11. When Derek died, the ide of Meredith falling in love, let alone getting married again, seemed impossible, and yet, that's exactly what's going to happen.
As seen in the Grey's Anatomy season 22 finale, "Bridge Over Troubled Water," Nick had a near-death experience that finally prompted Meredith to take a chance at another marriage. Granted that the pair has been dating for quite a while now and there's no doubt that they genuinely love each other, tying the knot takes their relationship to the next level. Meredith understood that, which was why she had been apprehensive of the idea, turning it down. However, the fact that she was the one to propose meant that she was serious about their relationship. This effectively ends Meredith's love life being defined by her time with Derek.
How Grey's Anatomy Made Nick Derek's Worthy Replacement
Meredith is moving on now to Nick, but understandably, Derek will still have a special place in her and long-time fans of Grey's Anatomy's hearts. Dempsey's portrayal of the character and his palpable chemistry with Ellen Pompeo will never be matched and will forever be part of the show's history. That said, the fact that Grey's Anatomy has even been able to introduce someone to succeed him is already impressive in itself, and it boils down to a couple of factors.
Firstly, as Grey's Anatomy evolved, Meredith's love life is no longer at the center of its storytelling the same way that it was during its earliest years. While her personal relationships remain important to the show, there are other dynamics at play now that help carry the ABC series. This way, the show has been able to gradually develop her and Nick's story in a way that was less disruptive. Secondly, Scott Speedman's Nick is also great. Sure, he isn't Derek, but he's similar enough to him that it's easy to understand why Meredith fell in love with him, but different enough to offer people something new. It will be interesting to see if their wedding goes down in Grey's Anatomy season 23.
20 Years Later, 'Grey's Anatomy' Needs To Stop Expanding
Once upon a time, the newest addition to the Grey's Anatomy roster felt like a special occasion, and there were various reasons for this, particularly the fact that someone could potentially die in increasingly ridiculous ways. But one of the biggest reasons was how well the show conveyed who the main characters were as individuals compared to virtually all other shows on network television.
Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), Alex Karev (Justin Chambers), Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl), and George O'Malley (T.R. Knight) built a strong connection with audiences throughout the first several seasons of the show. While all the medical calamities were very entertaining, they were ultimately worth watching only because they affected the lives of the central characters. As a result, when looking forward to ABC's Grey's Anatomy spin-off, it doesn't feel as exciting as it probably should.
The untitled series, co-created by Shonda Rhimes and current Grey’s showrunner Meg Marinis, will move the franchise to rural West Texas for the first time. Instead of centering on an established Grey’s character like Private Practice did with Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) or Station 19 did with Ben Warren (Jason George), this series will reportedly focus on an entirely new group of doctors.
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Already Feels Like a Different Show Than the One Fans Fell in Love With
Katherine Heigl, TR Knight, and Sandra Oh in an episode of Grey's Anatomy
Grey’s Anatomy has survived longer than almost anyone expected. It can be quite hard for a network drama to last upwards of 20 seasons, especially when it’s based on a rotating cast. Nonetheless, the amount of time a show has been on air and its continuing imaginative flow differ vastly. The original magic of the show stemmed from the comedic representation of dysfunctional, yet loving relationships and genuine emotional stories. Longtime fans of the show think that, as a whole, it has changed since it first began airing. The medical cases mattered more, but they also played a part in these characters' lives. The show struck a balance between that and never losing sight of the interns trying to survive impossible hours while ruining each other’s lives in on-call rooms.
Nowadays, it just seems like Grey's is trying to redo all of that. The show still knows how to manufacture cliffhangers, complete with explosions, hostage situations, near-death experiences, and surprise pregnancies, but there’s a growing sense that the series is repeating emotional beats instead of building toward anything meaningful. That’s part of why so many fans point to earlier seasons as the show’s natural endpoint. Some argue that Season 10 would have been the right place to stop after Cristina’s departure, while others think the COVID-focused Season 17 could have worked as a surprisingly poignant conclusion. There are even viewers who believe Season 14’s wedding-centered finale, “All of Me,” gave several core characters the closest thing the series has ever had to a satisfying ending. Instead, Grey’s kept going. And now, years after Pompeo stepped back from being the show’s full-time lead, ABC is preparing to expand the universe even further.
‘Private Practice’ Worked Because It Had a Reason To Exist
The cast of Private Practice in a promotional image.
Private Practice made sense because Addison was one of the franchise’s most beloved characters. The show also had a clear identity separate from Grey’s Anatomy. It traded Seattle’s chaotic surgical energy for a more intimate, slower-paced character drama in Los Angeles. Whether viewers loved it or not, it justified its existence almost immediately. On the other hand, Station 19 had a harder time carving out its own personality, but at least it still felt connected to the larger Grey’s world through familiar characters and frequent crossovers.
This new series doesn’t have either of those components just yet — news did just break, but where will the connections come from? Right now, the pitch mostly sounds like “Grey’s, but make it Texas.” That may change once casting details and storylines emerge, but it was the first impression fans got. A franchise can only expand so many times before audiences start noticing the machinery behind it.
ABC is turning nearly all of its biggest scripted dramas into franchises. 9-1-1 now has Nashville, The Rookie is getting The Rookie: North. One of the only ones missing is Grey's. Network television has become obsessed with expandable universes because recognizable IP is safer than launching something original from scratch. Viewers and advertisers know the name, and the network already knows there’s a built-in audience, but television history is full of franchises that kept growing long after the creative spark faded.
The Bigger Problem Is What the Spinoff Says About ‘Grey’s Anatomy’
Dylan Young (Kyle Chandler) carefully guiding Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) through removing a bomb in Grey's Anatomy.
What makes the timing of this announcement especially strange is that Grey’s Anatomy itself is reportedly receiving reduced episode orders for budget reasons, so while the flagship series gets smaller, the franchise keeps getting bigger. ABC clearly still sees enormous value in Grey’s Anatomy as a brand. The ratings remain solid, and the streaming numbers are strong because viewers have been tuning in to the show for numerous reasons over the course of 20 years, including as a habit, out of loyalty or nostalgia, or through an emotional connection with the show's veteran characters.
However, a show can continue to survive, sometimes for a very long time, but not necessarily have a chance to evolve. The medical drama genre has taken on a whole new approach since Grey's Anatomy began airing in 2005. The success of HBO Max's The Pitt, among others, relies heavily on the relatable realism and the emotional exhaustion that many viewers experience after watching Grey's, as well as Grey's original "glossy" style appearing more and more like an extreme version of reality TV, while maintaining some of its original elements (which was a huge part of the show's original appeal).
Yet it is hard to ignore that we, as viewers, currently see Grey's generating momentum towards a franchise rather than creative urgency. This does not indicate that the new spin-off will undoubtedly be a failure; after 20 years, Grey's has proven its critics wrong. Texas could bring a refreshing change of pace to the series. Perhaps a new group of doctors will strike a similar chord with viewers, just as they once did with Meredith and Cristina or George and Izzie.
It would just be nice if Grey's Anatomy just ended as we know it and aired reruns of Seasons 1-10. So many people would be here for that.
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