Grey’s Anatomy’s Camilla Luddington Hinted at Shocking Character Death

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Spoiler alert!

Camilla Luddington, who plays a role in *Grey’s Anatomy*, had previously suggested that a character would die before the start of season 22.

The ABC show revealed on its October 9th episode that Dr. Monica Beltran, portrayed by Natalie Morales, had died from injuries suffered in the explosion at the end of last season.

Camilla recently told TopMob News that while she’s usually excited for new seasons, she was actually dreading filming this one. She explained that the last season ended with a dramatic explosion, and she felt a lot of stress returning to set. It’s been a challenging experience for her.

The season finale was intense, but I think the very first episode, our premiere, is even more so. There’s a lot happening, and when we first read the script, we all immediately knew it was going to be a big one. I think viewers will be really thrilled, but also prepared for some emotionally difficult scenes.

Spoilers for the season 22 premiere of Grey’s Anatomy ahead.

Camilla Luddington wanted fans to keep the tissues at the ready.

The season 21 finale of *Grey’s Anatomy* ended with a dramatic explosion at Grey Sloan Memorial, leaving several doctors missing. So, it made sense that season 22 began by showing the aftermath. By the end of the October 9th episode, it became clear that not everyone survived – Dr. Monica Beltran (played by Natalie Morales) tragically died from her injuries. Interestingly, Camilla had hinted at this sad event beforehand, letting viewers know a tragedy was coming.

As a lifestyle expert, I often talk about facing challenges, and honestly, going back to film the season premiere was tough! I recently shared with TopMob News that, unlike many premieres I look forward to, this one felt daunting. Ending last season with that huge explosion really left an impact – I actually had to take a moment to mentally prepare myself before returning to set. It’s been a really intense experience, to say the least.

The season finale was intense, but I think the very first episode is even more so. There’s a lot happening, and when we first read the script, we immediately knew it was something special. I think audiences will be thrilled, but also prepared for some emotionally challenging scenes.

Camilla shared that the start of season 22 was especially difficult for her character, who is pregnant with twins and newly married to Atticus ‘Link’ Lincoln (Chris Carmack).

During the season 22 finale, it was revealed that Link survived the collapse, though he was seriously injured. While he made it out alive after the incident at the Seattle hospital, his recovery and return to surgery won’t be easy or fast.

Chris recently shared with TVLine that the character has significant injuries and a long road to recovery. While he’s determined to return to surgery, he’s currently focused on becoming a father. He and Jo are expecting twins, and his priority is being there for them as a husband and father.

Now that the excitement from the latest episode of *Grey’s Anatomy* has calmed down, let’s revisit some of the most surprising moments from the show’s many seasons.

The first episode of *Grey’s Anatomy* started with a surprise for new intern Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo): she discovered that the attractive man she’d spent the night with – played by Patrick Dempsey – was actually her new boss, the famous Dr. Derek Shepherd. Talk about an awkward beginning!

Viewers were shocked, just like Meredith, when Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) unexpectedly arrived at Seattle Grace and confronted her and Derek with the famous line, “You must be the woman who’s been sleeping with my husband.”

In its second season, *Grey’s Anatomy* aired after the Super Bowl and immediately grabbed viewers’ attention with a high-stakes scene: Meredith bravely stuck her hand inside a patient to prevent a live explosive from going off. Just when everyone started to relax as Dylan, a bomb squad chief played by Kyle Chandler, carried the explosive away, it detonated, tragically injuring him.

Viewers became invested in the romance between Izzie (Katherine Heigl) and Denny Duquette (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as he waited for a life-saving heart transplant during the second half of season two, rooting for them to find happiness together. However, when Izzie’s desperate attempt to prioritize him on the transplant list tragically backfired and led to his death in the season finale, it became clear that Grey’s Anatomy wasn’t afraid to break hearts and didn’t guarantee a cheerful outcome.

The season three ferry accident featured two shocking moments: Meredith being thrown into the icy water and almost drowning, and her later confession that she had actually stopped fighting to stay alive. Which of these was more surprising?

At the start of season three, Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh) joined Seattle Grace Hospital as an intern. Her arrival echoed how Derek first met Meredith – they had a brief encounter before she started – but thankfully, it didn’t lead to anything romantic. Lexie quickly introduced herself to George O’Malley in the intern locker room. As it turned out, she was Meredith’s younger half-sister, one of two daughters raised by their father, Thatcher, and his second wife, Susan, adding another layer to the hospital’s complex relationships.

Over two and a half seasons after his character died, Denny Duquette reappeared on the show as a ghost – and in a surprisingly bizarre storyline, he had a romantic encounter with Izzie Stevens. This incredibly strange scene wasn’t just for shock value; it was a way of hinting to both Izzie and the audience that something was seriously wrong with her health. It was eventually revealed she had advanced melanoma, stage IV, which had spread to her brain and other parts of her body.

Everyone anticipated Izzie would be the one to die in the season five finale, but George’s disappearance should have been a hint that something was wrong with him. When Meredith recognized the handwriting of the unidentified patient hit by a bus – the number 007, a nickname from earlier seasons – she tried to warn the surgeons, but they couldn’t save him. He died on the operating table.

This is one of the most shocking moments in *Grey’s Anatomy* history. In the season six finale, a grieving widower came to the newly merged Seattle Grace Mercy West hospital with a gun, intending to take his own life and seeking revenge. The shooting resulted in the deaths of some doctors and injuries to others, with a particularly disturbing image of Dr. Bailey being pulled from under a bed. Though Bailey survived, Meredith Grey suffered a tragic loss: she believed her husband, Derek, had been killed in the shooting and subsequently miscarried their baby.

Just two seasons after a devastating shooting at the hospital, Shonda Rhimes created another major crisis for her doctors. In the season eight finale, a plane carrying Meredith, Derek, Cristina Yang, Lexie, Mark Sloan, and Arizona Robbins crashed while they were traveling to Boise, Idaho for a surgery. The crash left them stranded and injured, and no one knew where they were. Sadly, Mark and Lexie died, Arizona lost her leg, and Derek almost permanently lost the use of his hand.

When Sandra Oh decided to leave *Grey’s Anatomy* after season 10, the show crafted a surprising exit for her character, Cristina Yang. They brought back Isaiah Washington as her ex-fiancé, Preston Burke, who she’d left at the altar years earlier. Burke offered Cristina his hospital in Switzerland, providing a way for her to leave Seattle. The return of Washington was particularly shocking, considering he had been fired from the show after using a homophobic slur against co-star T.R. Knight.

The season 10 finale of the show said farewell to Cristina and introduced Dr. Maggie Pierce, played by Kelly McCreary, as the new head of cardio-thoracic surgery. In a surprising reveal at the end of the episode, Maggie told Richard (James Pickens Jr.) she was the daughter of the famous Dr. Ellis Grey, asking if he knew her. This news shocked Richard – he didn’t know he had a daughter – and also stunned Meredith to learn she had another sister.

Everyone was shocked when Derek died near the end of season 11. He was killed in a car crash shortly after saving a family from their own accident. It was especially surprising because Patrick Dempsey had just renewed his contract, suggesting he’d be staying on the show. While Shonda Rhimes may have felt it was the only way to remove the character without invalidating their eleven-year relationship, it was still a painful loss for viewers.

Mer had already faced a lot, but in the twelfth season’s ninth episode, she experienced a terrifying attack by a patient. The attack resulted in a broken jaw that had to be wired shut to allow her hearing to recover. A particularly powerful scene featured Ellen Pompeo portraying Mer’s panic when her children were unable to visit her while she healed.

The show addressed Alex Karev’s unexpected departure after Justin Chambers left mid-season 16 by revealing he’d reconnected with his ex-wife, Izzie, years after she disappeared and filed for divorce. He discovered she’d been secretly raising their twins on a farm, and he chose to be with them instead of continuing his life in Seattle. It was a completely shocking twist that no one predicted.

During season 17, viewers saw Dr. Andrea “Andrew” DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti) tragically die. After working through personal mental health challenges, DeLuca had become an attending physician at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. However, true to the style of *Grey’s Anatomy*, his newfound stability was cut short when he was stabbed by someone connected to a human trafficking operation.

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2025-10-10 23:18