Grey's Anatomy Season 16: What We Know So Far

Kim Raver and Jim Pickens share their reactions to the very funny first episode table read and more!

By Lauren Piester Aug 21, 2019 10:13 PMTags
Watch: Kim Raver Tells "Grey's Anatomy" Season Premiere Secrets

Grey's Anatomy's got some major problems to deal with when it comes back for season 16. 

In the only real good news, Teddy just had a baby and finally seems to be on the right track with her baby daddy, best friend, and longtime crush, Owen, even while she's got boyfriend Koracick back home building her a crib. 

In some not-so-good news, Meredith is planning to turn herself in for insurance fraud now that she, Alex, and Richard have all been fired for their part in the scheme, Jo has just had herself committed to the psych ward to get herself some help, and Jackson Avery seems to be missing in the woods. 

You can see that there's some serious drama going down in the promo for the new season, which aired during Tuesday's Bachelor in Paradise. There's no new footage but there's definitely a vibe to the promo that's just a little bit alarming. 

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On the red carpet at ABC's TV Critics Association party earlier this month, Kim Raver told us that the premiere episode is "so quintessential Grey's," and you'll have to hit play on the video above to see her reenact the reactions to the first table read. There are gasps and awws and even some oh my gods apparently to be had this season, and Jim Pickens said we're in for some laughs. 

"There's some really funny moments in there that I think really sets up nicely for this season progressing. But yeah the first script is pretty funny, especially the stuff that I have with Alex," he told us. 

Richard and Alex are both currently out of a job, and while it feels like we can all assume that won't last long, Pickens says it'll put Richard to the test. 

"It'll test his relationships, obviously with Bailey and Meredith, and then with Alex. It's gonna test his sobriety, and it's gonna be some challenges," he says. "I think that's going to be the exciting part, to see how you navigate this and come out the other side." 

Pickens says they hadn't yet seen how things were going to play out with Richard, Bailey, and Meredith in the wake of the insurance fraud scandal, but he says Richard is definitely feeling a little upset. 

"Obviously with Bailey, there's a sense of...I don't want to say betrayal, but you know, I mentored her. And now for her to come back and fire me, obviously that's a big deal for me, so how do I digest that and formulate that and move on with our relationship?" 

ABC

For Teddy, she's got a whole lot on her plate beyond three of her colleagues getting fired, in a storyline she says will provide quite a bit of comedy. 

"I think where we're really leading to is how is Teddy going from cardiothoracic surgeon, like badass knowing how to do everything in that world, to entering into a world that she knows nothing about, and is she going to be a good mother?" 

In another bit of good news, we have at least one MerLuca scene to look forward to. Ellen Pompeo posted an Instagram story at the end of July featuring a shot of DeLuca in her bed. 

"This is my first scene of season 16 eating ice cream in bed with Giacomo Gianniotti and I get paid???" she wrote. "#Shondalandproblems" 

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After the season 15 finale, showrunner Krista Vernoff told us the writers planned to commit to the fact that Meredith had been fired and would be turning herself in for her well-intentioned crime, which DeLuca had taken the fall for. Mer has broken many rules and laws before, but this will be the first time something big will actually happen to her because of it. 

"We had her smuggle Megan Hunt's kid into the country, basically illegally, and we never came back and talked about it. It just was done. So we've seen her break a lot of rules and not have consequences, so we were like, everybody will think this story is over when she does this thing. They'll think it's a one-off story because we've done that several times before, and it will shock the hell out of the audience when very real consequences and ramifications come down because of it," Vernoff said. "And very real consequences and ramifications have come down, and they will be played through the next season."

Grey's Anatomy was renewed in May for two more seasons at least, meaning the show will live until at least 2021. 

Season 16 premieres Thursday, September 26 at 8 p.m. on ABC.