Give the fans what they want! Jesse WilliamsAnd Sarah DrewAfter their exits, they will be returning to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Grey’s Anatomy.
“So I heard you’ve been missing Japril… 😏 Don’t miss these two back on your screens for the #GreysAnatomy Season Finale!” the official Instagram account for the ABC series shared on Friday, April 22, alongside a photo of Williams, 40, and Drew, 41.
Originally, viewers fell in love with Jackson Avery and April Kepner (Drew), as they created their own connection in the medical drama. In March 2018, the Cruel SummerAfter nine seasons of the show, the alum was removed from the show along with costar. Jessica Capshaw (Arizona Robbins).
“The characters of Arizona and April are permanently woven into the fabric of Grey’s Anatomy thanks to the extraordinary work of Jessica Capshaw and Sarah Drew,” showrunner Krista VernoffThe statement was made at the time. “As writers, our job is to follow the stories where they want to go and sometimes that means saying goodbye to characters we love. It has been a joy and a privilege to work with these phenomenally talented actresses.”
Drew, for her parts, later spoke The Hollywood Reporter that Vernoff, 50, explained away her character’s departure as “she felt like April had been through so much and had come out the other side and that she didn’t know what she could put her through again.”
April wed Matthew (season 14).Justin Bruening) and decided to leave her job at the hospital to prioritize her faith. Fans who hoped to see April and Jackson together again were disappointed.
April and Jackson did reunite when Williams left the series in May 2021. During season 17, Jackson moved to Boston to take over his family’s foundation and April joined him with their daughter, Harriet.
“I directly impacted the dialogue, especially the episode a couple of weeks ago with me going to find my dad. I was directly involved in all of that language,” the Cabin in the WoodsActor Entertainment WeeklyIt was all about helping him to get out. “I know the character as well as anybody. People come and go — some writers come and go, directors come and go, but I’m that character all day, every day. So it’s just really beautiful for that to be acknowledged, and to feel included. It’s a privilege.”
Jesse Williams and Sarah Drew in ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’ ABC/Richard Cartwright
The Chicago native praised the writers’ room for allowing him to have a say in how his character would wrap up his time on Grey’s Anatomy.
“I feel really honored by having the opportunity to really form a story with our writers that honors the character and the characters around him, that world, and also has a connection to the real world,” he added. “It really marks a journey for him, particularly the personal element to the role with his father and really digging into self-improvement. That really impacted me.”
Drew and Williams supported fan requests to create a spinoff series about April and Jackson after their separations. “It’s a really interesting premise. We would kill it,” Williams told InsiderJune 2021. “I get it. I’m with them.”
Grey’s AnatomyABC airs Thursdays at 8. ET.
