And just like that, it looks like Japril is back on.
All it took was Jackson (Jesse Williams) and April's (Sarah Drew) trip to Montana on tonight's new episode of Grey's Anatomy to get the co-parents and former spouses back between the sheets. Well, that and a run-in with Jackson's long-lost pop—hey, Eric Roberts!—of course. But with the status of their relationship left rather ambiguous by the episode's end, not to mention that pesky Grey Sloan Memorial civil war they've got to return home to, where will the docs go from here?
For some clarity on the subject, E! News got Drew on the phone for her thoughts. What follows is our unedited Q&A, covering the thrilling fling, what it meant for April to be present during Jackson's major life moment, and how she's readying herself for the onslaught of tweets from Japril fans that she's certainly about to receive.
We've got to start right away with the moment that every Japril fan is going to be tweeting about. How are you preparing your Twitter feed for the deluge of tweets coming your way?
[Laughs] Oh my gosh, I don't know. I'm actually going to be on set all day tomorrow, so I'm going to have to be just popping back and forth between shots to talk to people, to talk to the fans and stuff. I've got a lot of behind the scenes photos which are kind of fun that I'm going to be posting. But, yeah, I know so many fans have been waiting for this moment and I think it's going to be pretty satisfying for them.
In all seriousness, what do you think this means for them? Is this like a "What happens in Montana, stays in Montana" situation or could this be the beginning of a true reunion for these two?
I think it could go in a couple different directions. It could either lead to total confusion about what their status is—they're still living together. They're still roommates and they've got this baby that they love and adore and have made together, you know? So it could either lead to confusion or it could be a solidification of their best friendship, just a reminder that they really have always been each other's person since their time over at Mercy West and it could be very platonic moving forward. Or it could be a total rekindling of their romance. And you'll just have to wait and keep watching to see what happens. But I think any of those is totally justifiable and makes total sense to me. I don't think it's a thing that happened that is never thought about again or discussed again. I think it meant something important, but what exactly that leads to, you'll just have to wait and see.
The episode also holds such huge moments for Jackson—
Oh my gosh, he's so amazing! Jesse is brilliant. He's absolutely brilliant. It's such beautiful work. it's really exciting to see him just shine in this way. it's really cool.
What do you think it meant to April to be the one there to help him work through this as he confronts his father?
You know, what I love the most about our dynamic in this episode is that so often in our history on the show together, April's been the one that's been spinning out of control and Jackson's the one that has to center her and ground her and show up for her. And that has been a pattern over and over and over again. She's the one that runs away and he has to get her back. She's the one that freaks out and he then has to show up for her. In this episode, she is rock solid for him. She shows up for him in a way that he didn't even know he needed or could articulate that he needed. He never thought that he would want to have her there for this. I think he discovers by the end of the episode that she was exactly the only right person to be there with him as he went through this. I love it.
I love that we get to see her be really strong for him and not need anything from him. That's the thing that I love the most about it. There was no moment of neediness for her. She didn't need him to be nicer to her, she didn't need him to get his act together. She knew what he needed, and then she provided that for him.
It was kept under wraps that Eric Roberts was cast as his father. What was it like getting to work with him?
He's so great. He's so amazing, so enthusiastic, so talented. Really fun to work with. it was a ball working with Eric Roberts. he was so awesome—and felt so right for this role. He's so charming and likable, but yet at the same time, you're like, "How could someone so charming and likable have completely abandoned all of his responsibilities and his own child?" It's hard. You want to hate him, but then you can't. It's an interesting line he has to walk to play this character and he does it brilliantly.
Aside from the big moment between the sheets, the fans overall have just been thrilled to get a Japril sequel after last season's episode. What did it mean for you and Jesse to get to have this one-off adventure again?
We felt a great sense of responsibility. We felt like Shonda [Rhimes] had trusted us with something huge. We felt that way last year, too. When she gave us that episode later year, it was an honor. It was really humbling to have her basically say I believe that these two characters will capture the attention of our Grey's Anatomy audience for an entire episode, you know? That felt very big and meaningful. And to get to do it again, it was even more of an honor.
And Jesse and I have always worked really well together. We've always been really passionate about the material, have always been super invested in our characters' journey and the relationship between April and Jackson. So, for us, this was just such a ball. We had so much fun working on the script and taking it to pieces and really finding and mining all of the inner workings and all the layers that were happening. And we were shooting on location and we were nowhere near the hospital, so it really felt like we ran off to do a little move together. And with Kevin [McKidd,] who we love and is one of out absolute favorite directors and people. So to have him at the helm for this episode was also such a tremendous gift. He's amazing.
What can you tease about what they return to at Grey Sloan next week with this civil war that's still waging on?
We pick up back at the hospital right where we left off before running over to Montana. And at this point, really the main focus is what's going on with Bailey, Arizona and Richard because there's a lot of feeling of betrayal and hurt and loyalty questions and all that stuff, so that stuff—there's a lot of be ironed out and healed and sorted through when we get back to the hospital. That's really the focus when we get back.
Before they left, Jackson and April were really on opposing sides in this whole situation. With the trip to Montana and all that they go through, does it sort of heal them or have they come to a different understanding? Or does it affect their positioning at all when they come back?
I think that basically what happens in Montana makes everything else feel pretty small and unimportant. This is a pretty big deal, him finding his father, looking for his father, conquering a huge fear that he had about whether he would be a good father or not. And April showing up for him through all of that and assuring him of what a tremendous dad he is, I think that ends up pretty much erasing the tension over hospital politics. So, yeah, I think there's enough that happens in Montana that really does a profound job of healing the two of them.
Grey's Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC.