It turns out the Grey’s Anatomy premiere explosion is just the start of season 22’s many twists and turns, according to show star Anthony Hill.
“There’s a lot of challenges for the people who survived the blast for lots of different reasons,” Hill, 37, who portrays Dr. Winston Ndugu, exclusively told Us Weekly on Friday, October 10. “Everybody has their own traumas from that experience in that blast, and then, picking up the pieces and trying to literally put the hospital back together and figure out how to move forward is going to be a tough dynamic to navigate for everybody and health physically, mentally and emotionally.”
According to Hill, the fallout will include “big curve balls” for the surviving Grey Sloan Memorial doctors.
“A lot of us are looking at each other in these scenes just like, ‘This is crazy,’ but I think that’s a testament to the writers,” Hill teased to Us. “They figured out how to do this show in a way that’s so effective for people, and that’s why people keep coming back and watching it. They just really enjoy what ride they’re gonna go on [each] week. And so, I think we’re doing a pretty good job. I think people will like it.”
During the Thursday, October 9, premiere, the Grey Sloan team grappled with the fallout from the shocking explosion at the end of last season. While many of the physicians’ lives hung in the balance throughout the episode, it was ultimately Dr. Monica Beltran (Natalie Morales) who succumbed to her injuries.
Winston, Jules Millen (Adelaide Kane), Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone) and the rest of the Grey Sloan crew were left reeling when they learned the news.
“I mean, if you think about Jules’ experience through that, her mentor died in her arms,” Hill told Us. “That’s horribly traumatic, and that’s just one example.”
After Jules watched pediatric surgeon Monica die in the operating room, she sought comfort in Winston’s arms while breaking down in tears. (As fans will remember, Winston and his subordinate dealt with a will-they-won’t-they story line in season 21.)
“That was a very emotional scene for Addie to play, so it’s a layered scene for her,” Hill told Us of working alongside Kane, 35, in the premiere. “I just found myself trying to be present with my acting coworker and [tried] to help [her] give the best performance [she] could. … It’s heated, like, it’s charged. I don’t know if we were aware of that fully, but seeing it play out [in the episode] was really beautiful.”
He continued, “We’re just trying to be honest in the moment, but then seeing how effective that was [was] kind of jarring. I was like, ‘Oh, man, where is this going?’ And it’s a nice slow burn that they’ve written, so we’ll see where it ends. There might be some curve balls.”
While it might have looked like Winston and Jules shared a near-kiss, Hill told Us that his character wasn’t actually thinking about romance in the heat of the moment.
“Winston was trying to be there for Jules. He sees she’s having a breakdown. He cares about her,” Hill explained. “He knows [there are] levels of trauma that are indescribable. … First of all, what happens through that, sometimes you can’t control, and I think there was an energy between them that was undeniable in that moment. So were either of them going in for a kiss? Not purposefully, but I think what ended up evolving in that scene was something kind of magnetic and kind of special that wasn’t planned.”
The drama won’t stop there, however, with Hill teasing that fans could perhaps see another shocking death before the season’s finale.
“This is Grey’s Anatomy, so we know that nobody’s all good ever. Shonda [Rhimes] set that tone early,” Hill quipped, referring to the creator of the hit medical drama. “I think there’s plenty of room for complications to happen with any of these characters that could end in a demise. It’s just how the show is, and it’s built-in. … We’re shooting some things that may play into that. We’re about halfway through right now, so it’s getting a little spicy.”
Grey’s Anatomy airs on ABC Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET.
