Grey’s Anatomy firefighter spin-off adds director Paris Barclay

Shonda Rhimes is at it again, only this time she’s enlisting Emmy winner Paris Barclay to serve as the producing director and executive producer on the new Grey’s Anatomy Spinoff show. He will join Rhimes and her Shondaland partner Betsy Beers.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the former DGA president will be a welcomed addition to Shondaland, bring his knowledge and expertise to the table. His expertise won him an two Emmy for directing episodes of NYPD Blue while receiving nominations for Glee and The West Wing. He has also directed episodes of Scandal, Sons of Anarchy, The Good Wife, Empire, and Weeds, to name a few. Barclay most recently worked on CBS’s Major League Baseball drama, Pitch.

So could the addition of Barclay be a strategic move in order to get ABC back up in the running for an Emmy? Considering that ABC hasn’t been in the Outstanding Drama category since Lost at the 2009-2010, it’s definitely a possibility that Barclay’s experience could help be a step in the right direction. However, only time will tell.

The new untitled project will follow a group of heroic firefighters from the highest ranking members to the lowest, detailing their personal and professional lives.

The spinoff, which was picked up straight to series this past May will air its first episode as a planted episode of Grey’s Anatomy, which will air its 14th season in the fall on ABC.

What we know about the spinoff is that it will feature an entirely new cast, meaning that this puts an end to the rumor that Grey’s Anatomy’s Jason George could be moving over to the new show. If fans will recall at the end of season 13 George’s character, Ben, decided to become a full firefighter, which then fueled rumors that he could be departing the long time running medical drama.

Overall, it will be interesting to see how Shonda Rhimes will connect the two shows or how they will intercept. One option could be that the shows overlap in the ER, either with the firefighters bring in a patient for the doctors or one of the firefighters is the patient. Both concepts would be entertaining.

For more news related to the Grey’s Anatomy Spinoff, be sure to visit this link. Grey’s Anatomy returns and its spinoff will premiere in the fall. (Photo: ABC.)

This story was written by Samantha D’Amico. If you want to follow her on Twitter, you can do so at @SAM_iamXO.