'Grey's Anatomy' Season 17 Spoiler: Showrunners Reveal Possibility of Finale Coming Soon
For the first time since its release, "Grey's Anatomy" is planning the end of the current season with a massive question mark about its future.
Showrunner Krista Vernoff is making a contingency plan if the hit medical series will not be returning for the 18th season.
According to reports, ABC hasn't reached a deal to renew the series leaving Vernoff and her team in a predicament and the possibility to wrap up the series with only a few remaining episodes left to air for its current season.
'Grey's Anatomy' Season 17: The Possible Finale
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Vernoff shared the dilemma she and her team are currently facing as they approach writing the finale of "Grey's Anatomy" season 17.
She admitted, "I'm planning a season and a finale that could function as either a season finale or a series finale."
"I'm planning for both contingencies, and it's hard, and it's not ideal. It's not where I wish we were," she added.
Vernoff reportedly asked the ABC bosses to finally decide just before they start production on the finale so it wouldn't be challenging to adjust.
She noted, "There are a couple of character threads that will change."
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"Either there will be closure, or I will build something in that allows me to have a bit of cliffhanger and a thread for next season."
Vernoff also added that because of the COVID-19 pandemic, their entire time is running "on fumes" and haven't written any storylines yet should the network renew "Grey's Anatomy" for season 18.
It's also been reported that Ellen Pompeo, the lead cast of "Grey's Anatomy," signed a multi-season deal set to expire with the current run of episodes.
In 2018, she signed a deal covering seasons 15 and 16that made Pompeo TV's highest-paid primetime actress. The contract was later extended in 2019, which would cover season 17.
Ellen Pompeo Speaks Out on 'Grey's Anatomy' Possible Ending
Ellen Pompeo considered the possibility of the end in an interview on CBS' "Sunday Morning."
She revealed that "I wanna make sure we do this character and this show and the fans... I wanna make sure we do it right."
She was also reluctant to tease if a last-minute renewal of the show was possible.
"We honestly have not decided," Ellen Pompeo shared. "We are trying to figure it out right now."
