‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Alum Marks Reunion With Cast Member to Tease Upcoming Return

The course of true love never did run smoothly on Grey’s Anatomy, and the case of Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) and April Kepner (Sarah Drew) is no exception. The on-again-off-again-ultimately-off-again couple split for good at the end of season 14 when April left Grey Sloane Memorial to work with the homeless and marry her ex, and Drew was let go from the show. However, Drew is returning to Grey’s as a guest star, and the Japril shippers are in full theorizing mode.

Drew and Williams both shared some behind-the-scenes footage of each other on Instagram as they prepared to reunite onscreen. “Nbd. Not excited at all [five red heart emojis],” Drew posted alongside a masked selfie. Williams shared a video of the two of them giggling together on the way to set.

There is no news yet on how the show will explain April’s return, although she shares a daughter with Jackson, so it isn’t too far-fetched. With the possible end of the medical drama in sight with a Season 18 renewal in limbo, does this mean that Japril could be endgame? Williams told TVLine in 2019 that Drew was “one of my favorite people in the world” and that he “would love” for her to return to Grey’s. “April is local and we share a kid together, so it would be an opportunity to highlight what it is to be a co-parent, or what it is for April to be a third wheel in my relationship with Maggie,” he said. “It’s real-life. Most marriages end in divorce which means new people come into our lives and you have to co-exist. You don’t see a lot of that on broadcast television.”

Even actor Justin Bruening, who plays April’s husband Matthew, understands the enduring appeal of Japril. “I got stopped at a grocery store recently,” he told EW in 2020. “They can’t place where they recognize me from. I’ll say, ‘Well, it’s probably Grey’s,’ and then they’ll get wide-eyed and ask, ‘Who are you?’ I’ll say Matthew. And they’re like, ‘Oh yeah, we love you… but to be honest, we want Jackson and April together.’”

“I take it as a compliment,” he explained. “I did my job. My purpose the first time was to get Jackson and April back together, and my purpose the second time was to give April the happy ending she truly deserved.” However, even if April made the more responsible choice, Bruening admitted that there is a Shakespearean appeal to the drama of Japril. “That’s the love story. It’s Romeo and Juliet,” he said. “Two people that shouldn’t be together want to be together, and that’s completely fine, even though I’m married to her now. So technically, I won.”