‘Grey’s Anatomy’ season 11 winter finale: Patrick Dempsey, Ellen Pompeo size up Meredith and Derek
Remember the days when Meredith and Derek were happy on “Grey’s Anatomy“? At times, they feel pretty far away. These two characters have been at odds for the vast majority of season 11, and for a variety of reasons including their family, Maggie arriving on the scene, and Derek opting to not go to Washington so that he can stay in Seattle, and Meredith can continue to live her dream. He has subtly reminded her of this often, which is in turn why Meredith is made to feel guilty about it often.
Before tonight’s winter finale, Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey were kind enough to try to think of their characters as real people (isn’t that the goal of the show?), and offer them each a little bit of advice. We start with Ellen, who told The Hollywood Reporter that the two characters need to take their own conceited attitudes and shove them aside:
“I think when it’s any relationship — whether it’s romantic or friendship — you have to take ego out of it … Ego is enemy No. 1 and sometimes I think it’s a tricky balance — not between work and a relationship but between ego and drive. How much ego do you have? How much drive do you have? And how much drive can you have with as little ego as possible? I think that’s something everybody should strive for: drive without ego.”
Meanwhile, Dempsey suggests to the website that their schedules are one of the biggest reasons for the conflict:
“The conflict is in the battle of what is going on individually with them: What they’re sacrificing, what their choices are and how to juggle all those things … That is something that is universal. Most contemporary couples and professionals try to have a family and do it all and it’s very challenging. How does that compound the relationship? Do they grow apart or do they grow together? Is it a destructive thing. Do they ultimately have to get out from under the destruction that has occurred? Can they? How does that affect their children? How do the children behave? How does it affect them at work? There’s a lot that’s going on that I think people could really relate to and identify with.”
Don’t imagine that you are going to get firm answers to these questions by the time tonight’s new episode airs. This is going to be a story that probably lasts the remainder of the season.
Of course, we want to know what you think the odds are of Meredith and Derek sticking together the rest of the series’ run, so share in the comments! Also, check out a preview for tonight’s episode, or sign up to get some more TV updates on all we cover, sent right to your email inbox. (Photo via ABC.)