Ellen Pompeo sheds light on financial reason for not leaving 'Grey's Anatomy'

IANS April 15, 2025 233 views

Ellen Pompeo has strategically maintained her connection to Grey's Anatomy despite scaling back her role. Her decision is driven by both financial considerations and emotional attachment to the long-running medical drama. The actress appears to be carefully managing her legacy while ensuring she continues to benefit from the show's ongoing success. Her approach reflects a savvy understanding of her value in the entertainment industry.

"If I were to walk away completely, everybody gets to make money from my hard work for 20 years" - Ellen Pompeo, El País
Ellen Pompeo sheds light on financial reason for not leaving 'Grey's Anatomy'
Los Angeles, April 15: Actress Ellen Pompeo is categorically clear about her trajectory on the superhit show ‘Grey's Anatomy’. The actress, who has starred as Meredith Grey on the record-breaking medical drama since its premiere in 2005, took on a more scaled-back role in the ABC series beginning with season 19 in 2022.

Key Points

1

Pompeo maintains strategic connection to Grey's Anatomy

2

Show streamed over one billion times in 2024

3

Actress negotiated $20 million deal in 2017

4

Appearing in limited season 21 episodes

However, she continues to be a major force at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, and has a very simple answer behind her decision, reports ‘People’ magazine.

"That would make no sense, emotionally or financially", Pompeo, 55, told El País of leaving the hit ABC series.

"The show was streamed more than a billion times in 2024. More than a billion times. The companies that own the show and stream the show make a lot of money from our images and our voices and our faces”, she said. "If I were to walk away completely, everybody gets to make money from my hard work for 20 years and I wouldn’t make any money. To me, it doesn’t make any sense that everybody (else) gets to profit off of my hard work. And emotionally, the show means a lot to people. I want to have an attitude of gratitude toward the show”.

As per ‘People’, Pompeo appeared in only eight episodes of season 19 of Grey's as she was filming her newest project, Hulu's ‘Great American Family’, and her character made the emotional decision to leave Seattle during that season.

Despite her departure, Meredith was around again in season 20 and in the latest installment, season 21, she is set to appear in at least seven episodes.

The evolution of Pompeo's role in the series came after she negotiated a $20 million deal in 2017 that made her the highest-paid actress on TV, earning $575,000 per episode.

Reader Comments

S
Sarah T.
Good for her for knowing her worth! 👏 After 20 years of carrying that show, she absolutely deserves to benefit from its success. Smart business move while still giving fans what they want.
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Marcus L.
I respect her honesty about the financial aspect. So many actors pretend it's all about the art, but at the end of the day, this is their job. $20 million deal is insane though!
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Jamie R.
While I understand her position, I wish she'd fully commit or leave. The back-and-forth makes Meredith's storyline feel disjointed. Still love her though! ❤️
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Tyler K.
A billion streams?! That's wild. No wonder she's sticking around - that's generational wealth right there. Can't blame her one bit.
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Priya N.
Her attitude of gratitude is so refreshing. Many actors get bitter about long-running roles, but she acknowledges what the show has given her while still being practical.
D
Dani W.
I miss full-time Meredith but totally get why she's doing this. That Hulu show was actually really good too! Multitasking queen 👑

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Tags:
Ellen Pompeo Grey's Anatomy TV Actress Medical Drama ABC Series Meredith Grey
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