‘Grey’s Anatomy’ and ‘Station 19’ Crossover to Lead With Unexpected Death

Grey’s Anatomy and Station 19 return Thursday night with a crossover fit for the Shonda Rhimes universe. The crossover will lead to an unexpected death in Station 19, and the episodes are filled with “heart-wrenching” moments, Station 19 actor Grey Damon teased. The Grey’s Anatomy episode is also the first since Justin Chambers’ Alex Karev left the show for good.

In the crossover episodes, “someone really beloved gets really hurt,” Damon, who plays Lieutenant Jack Givson, told Us Weekly Thursday. “In the next episode of Station 19, someone — not who you’d expect — dies. It’s someone very beloved. Y’all are going to be all messed up about it.”

Damon said reading the script made him break out into tears.

“I cried really loud and it’s hard to make me cry,” the former Aquarius actor said. “Especially reading… I don’t cry when I read. I did, like, the lip quiver thing. It was pretty bad.”

The crossover picks up from the end of the Grey’s Anatomy midseason finale, which saw a car crash into Joe’s Bar. Those stuck inside the bar have to get out, and the events will have a ripple effect through the start of Station 19 Season 3. It will all come to a head with the third episode of the season, mysteriously titled “Eulogy.”

“There are really beautiful moments, some heart-wrenching,” Damon told Us Weekly. “It’s, at times, really dark. This is definitely a different vibe this season. She’s definitely given it a different vibe.”

Jason George, who plays Ben on Station 19, told Entertainment Weekly his character will take a leadership role in the crossover.

“Ben’s hit a spot now where he is, at any moment in time, kind of the guy who knows what he’s doing,” George explained. “If he’s not in charge officially, he’s capable of being in charge and will push the guy in charge. So in the bar, he definitely takes on a bit of that role, especially with some of the interns where he’s barking orders at folks to get stuff done and they leap into action. But Ben is at that crossroads between firefighter and a doctor where he can bark orders at everybody.”

Even though this traditional crossover is just Thursday night’s episode, you can expect more connections between the two shows, especially as Krista Vernoff is the showrunner for both shows.

“Krista Vernoff running both shows allows for the shows to be synced up incredibly well,” George told EW. “So this sets the stage for that. And the fun part is while every week won’t be a quote-unquote crossover event, there’s always going to be characters crossing over. I mean people have been watching Jackson and Vic getting together on Grey’s. And they’re not the last romantic relationship.”

Station 19 starts at 8 p.m. ET Thursday, with Grey’s Anatomy following at 9 p.m. ET.

Photo credit: ABC/Tony Rivetti