Turns out, it wasn’t a cruel surprise only for the viewers.
If there’s one thing Grey’s Anatomy will always be known for, it’s how easily the show kills off characters who have no intention of coming back.
While this tendency is perfectly understandable in a fantasy war setting like Game of Thrones, for Grey’s Anatomy’s modern time period, this number of deaths is almost scandalous.
However, not every death in the universe has affected fans in the same way. Of course, each was a huge tragedy, but since some characters are more beloved than others, it was natural for the fandom to react differently.
It’s safe to say that the deaths of Lexie Grey and Mark Sloan at the end of season 8 and the beginning of season 9, respectively, were the most devastating of all.
Not only were they madly in love and broken up in such a cruel way, but no one could have predicted that this would happen.
Not only the fans but also the cast of the show were devastated by the news of Chyler Leigh’s departure. Since no one prepared the cast beforehand, they found out about Lexie’s death during a table read.
In an interview with E!News, Sarah Drew, who played April Kepner on Grey’s Anatomy at the time, recalled the moments when most of her co-stars learned of the plot twist:
“We were all weeping at the table read because nobody knew it was coming. There were rumors that maybe somebody might die, but nobody knew who. Well, I guess she knew, but the rest of us didn’t! We really did sob our way through that table read, it was pretty sad.”
Little did they know that another of their co-stars, Eric Dane, who played Mark Sloan, was already next in line to be eliminated.
In the end, the only thing that comforts fans to this day is that Mark and Lexie went out (almost) together and probably found each other again, as soulmates always do.
Grey’s Anatomy, on the other hand, feels more alive than ever and has been renewed for another, 20th anniversary season on ABC. Despite a slight delay due to the writers’ strike, the show is set to return to our screens in midseason 2023. Stay tuned for updates!