Grey’s Anatomy Teases Jesse Williams’ Unexpected Return for Season 22

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Jesse Williams is lacing up his scrub cap again. 

Jesse Williams, who played Dr. Jackson Avery on Grey’s Anatomy, is returning to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital for a special appearance after leaving the show in 2021.

The character, who hasn’t been on the show much since leaving in 2021, unexpectedly appeared in a recent preview for a new episode. He encourages Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) to go back to her Alzheimer’s research in Boston—where he’s now living as well.

In a preview for the October 30th episode, Meredith is shocked, saying, “You’ve got to be kidding me.” The clip then shows her unexpectedly finding Jackson at the hospital and questioning him about Tom Koracick (Greg Germann), asking, “You let Koracick publish his Alzheimer’s research?”

To which Jackson simply quips, “Good to see you by the way.”

Meredith resumed her research into Alzheimer’s disease, picking up where she left off in season 19. A key point she raised was that previous studies only used male mice, which could affect the results.

Jackson, later unfazed, calls out Meredith’s halted research in another clip.

He pointed out that her lab seemed to be sitting empty and she hadn’t released any research papers. He suggested she spend the summer working on getting her work published instead of staying secluded in the lab.

The latest episode of Grey’s Anatomy featured not one, but two unexpected returns. First, Kate Walsh was back as Addison Montgomery, and now Sophia Bush has reprised her role as Dr. Cass Beckham. Her character is sparking a romance with Dr. Teddy Altman (Kim Raver) while Teddy navigates a divorce from Dr. Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd).

The October 23rd episode of the show finally resolved the romantic tension between Teddy and Cass. Teddy picked Cass up for a date and kissed her, signaling she’s fully committed despite Cass’s initial hesitation. A preview for the October 30th episode shows them together in bed, with Teddy playfully urging Cass to hurry so they aren’t late.

The show then jumps to an uncomfortable encounter between the women and Owen, along with Dr. Atticus “Link” Lincoln (Chris Carmack), who is recovering well after the explosion at the end of last season. He cheerfully announces to Teddy and Cass, “Officially discharged!”

Since its debut in 2005, Grey’s Anatomy has delivered countless shocking moments, but a few really stand out. Here’s a look back at the most unforgettable scenes from the series created by Shonda Rhimes that had viewers reaching for help…

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 surgeon Dr. Derek Shepherd. Talk about awkward!

Viewers were as shocked as 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 having an affair with my husband.”

During its second season, Grey’s Anatomy aired a dramatic scene after the Super Bowl where Meredith bravely stuck her hand inside a patient to prevent a live explosive from going off. Viewers breathed a sigh of relief when Dylan, a bomb squad chief played by Kyle Chandler, started to carry the explosive away. However, the bomb unexpectedly detonated, tragically injuring him.

Viewers became invested in the romance between Izzie (Katherine Heigl) and Denny Duquette (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) as Denny waited for a life-saving heart transplant during the second half of season two, and many fell in love with their story alongside Izzie. When Izzie’s desperate attempt to get Denny a heart faster 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 always deliver the happy endings fans hoped for.

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

Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh) joined Seattle Grace at the start of season three. Her arrival echoed how Derek first met Meredith – they had a chance encounter the night before she started – though thankfully, things didn’t go quite as far! She quickly introduced herself to George O’Malley (T.R. Knight) in the intern locker room. As it turned out, Lexie 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 unexpectedly reappeared as a ghost – and had a romantic encounter with Izzie. This bizarre scene wasn’t just shocking; it was a way for the show to subtly reveal to both Izzie and the audience that she was seriously ill. It turned out she had advanced melanoma, stage IV, which had spread to her brain and other parts of her body.

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

The season six finale of Grey’s Anatomy is remembered as one of the show’s most shocking and upsetting episodes. Following the hospital’s merger with Mercy West, a grieving widower arrived with a gun, leading to a tragic shooting. Several doctors were killed or wounded, and the horrifying image of Bailey being pulled from under a bed remains deeply disturbing. While Bailey survived, Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd suffered a devastating loss: Meredith miscarried after believing Derek had been fatally shot.

Just two seasons after a devastating shooting at the hospital, Shonda Rhimes introduced another major crisis. 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. They were left stranded and injured in a remote area, and no one knew they were missing. The crash tragically resulted in the deaths of Lexie and Mark, cost Arizona her leg, and almost left Derek with permanent hand damage.

When Sandra Oh decided to leave Grey’s Anatomy after season 10, the show found a dramatic way to say goodbye to her character, Cristina. 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, giving her a reason to leave Seattle. The return of Washington was especially shocking, considering he’d been fired from the show after using a hateful 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 Webber (James Pickens Jr.) that she was the daughter of the renowned Dr. Ellis Grey. Richard wasn’t the only one shocked by this news – it also came as a surprise that Meredith had another sister.

Everyone was shocked when Derek unexpectedly died near the end of season 11. He’d just rescued a family from a car accident when he was fatally injured in a collision. It was a particularly surprising exit because Patrick Dempsey had recently renewed his contract. 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 moment for viewers.

Mer had already faced a lot, but in the twelfth season’s ninth episode, things got even worse when a patient violently attacked her, breaking her jaw. She needed surgery to fix it, and her jaw had to be wired shut as part of the healing process, which threatened her hearing. A particularly powerful scene showed Mer having a panic attack because her children weren’t able to visit her while she recovered, and Ellen Pompeo delivered a truly moving performance.

The show addressed Alex Karev’s unexpected departure after Justin Chambers left by revealing he’d reconnected with his ex-wife, Izzie, years after she disappeared and filed for divorce. He discovered she had twins and had been raising them on a farm. Ultimately, he chose to be with his new family 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 battling and overcoming mental health issues, DeLuca had become an attending physician at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. However, true to the style of Grey’s Anatomy, his progress was cut short when he was fatally stabbed by someone connected to a human trafficking operation.

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2025-10-24 22:47