Grey’s Anatomy star Ellen Pompeo recently shared that she was “horrified” by her iconic “love me” scene in the series. The medical drama, which revolves around the life of Dr. Meredith Grey (played by Pompeo), first aired on ABC in March 2005. Grey’s Anatomy holds the title of longest-running scripted primetime show on ABC and kicked off its 18th season in September 2021. The show has been well-received by both audiences and critics alike, racking up 38 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, consisting of two for Outstanding Drama Series.
From the very start, Dr. Meredith Grey and Dr. Derek Shepherd (played by Patrick Dempsey) appeared to have stand-out roles, and it was relatively evident that a love story would blossom. However, their relationship began in a rather unorthodox way and did not materialize without its adversity. The pair initially met in an alcohol-fueled, one-night-stand sort of way, and without really knowing anything about each other, went on with their respective lives.
Meredith soon realizes that the man she had woken up next to was none other than Dr. Shepherd, the chief of Neurology and her new boss at Seattle Grace, where she was set to begin her internship. The love story features many more roadblocks along the way, including Derek’s secret marriage, which was a bombshell on both Meredith in the show, and audiences at home.
In a recent episode of her Tell Me With Ellen Pompeo podcast (via Insider), the Grey’s Anatomy star shared that she was “horrified” by her iconic “love me” scene with Dempsey. Pompeo had former Bachelorette lead, Rachel Lindsay, on as her guest, and the conversation led to uncovering a similarity between The Bachelor and Pompeo’s renowned scene.
In the scene, Meredith quite literally begs Derek to love her after recently discovering his secret marriage. Pompeo went on to tell Lindsay that she did not want to shoot the scene and that she was horrified about being on television begging a man like that. She said, “I’m bawling because I was like, ‘I can’t believe that I’m on TV begging a man to love me.'” The actress did express her understanding of the scene’s impact and how it became “one of the most popular scenes in television history.” See the iconic line from the show below:
“I love you. In a really, really big, pretend to like your taste in music, let you eat the last piece of cheesecake, hold a radio over my head outside your window, unfortunate way that makes me hate you/love you. So pick me. Choose me. Love me.”
At one point, Pompeo’s 12-year old daughter, who she had not allowed to watch the show, came across the scene on TikTok and asked her mother why she was pleading so hard for a man’s attention. Pompeo, who initially did not know how to respond, was pleased that her daughter’s head was “in the right space,” ultimately explaining how she did not write the scene nor want to shoot it. As the interview progressed, Pompeo and Lindsay pondered why women put themselves in situations similar to the one Meredith had found herself in, and Lindsay described how editors of The Bachelor made her appear to beg on television as well.
Although the iconic Grey’s Anatomy scene is beloved by audiences and pertains relevant to the show’s storyline, it does not seem unwarranted for Pompeo to hold resentment for portraying herself or her character in that way. No matter who they are, most people want to maintain some sense of dignity and self-respect, which is somewhat negated when resorting to pleading and begging for love or anything else. Nevertheless, this is only one scene in a prominent show full of talented actors and premium writing that has ultimately influenced so much of what viewers watch in today’s world of television.