TV Shows

‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Season 21 Officially Ordered at ABC

The long-running medical drama is currently airing its 20th season on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.
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Grey's Anatomy – "Walk on the Ocean" – Meredith and Amelia work to secure funds for their research while Amelia finds herself at odds with a new attending. Levi runs into someone from his past, and Owen gives Winston advice. Lucas ditches Mika, forcing her to treat a patient alone. THURSDAY, MARCH 28 (9:00-10:01 p.m. EDT) on ABC. (Disney/Anne Marie Fox)<br>ELLEN POMPEO

The doctors at Grey Sloan Memorial will continue to scrub in as long as they possibly can. Long-running ABC medical drama Grey’s Anatomy has been renewed for a record-breaking 21st season. The network confirmed the good news on Instagram with a very on-brand caption. News of the renewal comes after only three episodes of the 20th season have aired, but it seems like the ratings were just too good to ignore.

TVLine reports that Grey’s averages about 3.5 million total viewers and a 0.5 demo rating weekly, just behind lead-in and ABC newbie 9-1-1, which was also renewed for next season. The ratings are an improvement from last season, which averaged 3.3 million viewers with a 0.4 demo rating, according to TV Series Finale. While it has only been three episodes, it seems like ABC isn’t taking any chances.

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Meanwhile, Season 20 of Grey’s Anatomy has been making waves. While lead Ellen Pompeo bowed out as a series regular last season, that hasn’t stopped her from stopping by Grey Sloan from time to time, as she still makes occasional appearances and provides the voiceover at the beginning and end of the episodes. This season is also seeing the return of Jessica Capshaw as Arizona Robbins after departing in the Season 14 finale. After departing in Season 18 as Dr. Nico Kim, Alex Landi has also made a return that is already bringing complications to Jake Borelli’s Levi Schmitt.

As Grey’s Anatomy continues its reign as the longest-running primetime medical drama, spinoff Station 19 is not so lucky. The firefighter spinoff was canceled late last year and is set to end after the current seventh season. However, fans are not going down without a fight, as many have been campaigning to save it. As of now, there’s no indication that Station 19 will be coming back, but you never know what could happen.

Even though Station 19 is ending, there will still be one last crossover between the two shows to look forward to later this season. There is still much to look forward to on Grey’s Anatomy Season 20, which will only have 10 episodes due to the dual Hollywood strikes, but it’s exciting to know that the staff at Grey Sloan Memorial will be coming back. In the meantime, new episodes air on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC, with all 20 seasons streaming on Hulu.