The upcoming 19th season of Grey’s Anatomy is set to introduce a new crop of medical interns to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, and with that comes a return to the show’s roots.
Kevin McKidd, who plays Dr. Owen Hunt in the long-running ABC medical drama, spoke about the new characters as he walked the red carpet at the Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards in Beverly Hills on Saturday, August 13. The Scottish actor teased that the upcoming additions make the show feel like it’s starting from scratch.
“We have this amazing group of new interns, brilliant, young, vibrant actors who are really passionate,” he told People. “So it’s making room for that. It’s almost like we’re going back to the beginning, if that makes sense.”
He continued, “We’re not really rebooting, but it’s definitely that pilot episode when Sandra Oh and T.R. Knight first kind of walked into the hospital. We’re kind of doing that again. And it’s very exciting to feel that we’re all part of that.”
It was previously announced that Alexis Floyd, Niko Terho, Midori Francis, Adelaide Kane, and Harry Shum Jr. would be joining Grey’s Anatomy Season 19 as the new first-year surgical residents. This comes as the show’s lead, Ellen Pompeo, announced that she is scaling back her role in the upcoming season, only appearing in eight episodes.
“Definitely [Pompeo’s] character is such a dominant, iconic character on the show,” stated McKidd. “It’s definitely going to make some room for different stories to be told. So I think everyone is excited about that.”
As for his own character, McKidd knows there is a lot to deal with after Season 18 saw Dr. Hunt confessing to helping a patient die by euthanasia. “He did a noble thing last year, but he bent the rules too much, and he has to pay the price,” McKidd explained. “He’s already paid a significant price, but it’s going to be interesting to see how that plays out because he isn’t out of hot water yet. He has to dig himself out.”
Grey’s Anatomy, Season 19 Premiere, Thursday, October 6, 9/8c, ABC
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