Grey's Anatomy (season 12)

Plots

The season follows the story of surgical residents, fellows, and attendings as they experience the difficulties of the competitive careers they have chosen. It is set in the surgical wing of the fictional Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, located in Seattle, Washington.

The season takes place three months after the events of the last season finale in which Richard and Catherine got married. April and Jackson's relationship has hit the rocks after April has resumed her work overseas in Jordan, leaving Jackson high and dry once again. Once the new intern year begins, Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) starts teaching the new interns an anatomy class. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) is appointed the new Chief of Surgery, much to the dismay of her husband Ben Warren (Jason George), who starts to feel like he is the inferior one in their relationship, leading to some tension between the two.

Maggie Pierce (Kelly McCreary) begins a relationship with intern Andrew DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti), however they face some problems that many new relationships face. However these problems become much worse for the two when Andrew starts to avoid Maggie. April Kepner (Sarah Drew) returns from Jordan in the premiere wanting to improve her relationship with her husband, Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams), while Jackson doesn't feel the same way and wants to end their relationship. The two start trying the work through their problems and end up have a one-night stand. This results in April becoming pregnant with Jackson's baby, although she does not wish to tell him. Jackson then believes that there is no way of the two working through their problems and wants a divorce, to which April agrees, withholding her pregnancy from him.

Penelope "Penny" Blake (Samantha Sloyan) is introduced as a new transfer resident from Dillard Medical Center and new love interest for Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez). Callie brings Penny to a dinner party hosted by Meredith, Amelia and Maggie. Once arriving Meredith immediately recognizes Penny as one of the doctors that worked on her husband, Derek Shepherd at the time of his death. This news brings much dismay to Callie, however she still continues into a relationship with Penny causing tension between herself, Meredith and Amelia Shepherd. Meredith begins working with Penny and finds it very difficult, although after seeking the advice of Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.), Meredith forms a working relationship with Penny and the two form a student and mentor bond.

Nathan Riggs (Martin Henderson), a friend of April's from Jordan, is hired by Bailey. He is revealed to have a dark history with Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd), resulting in much friction between Hunt and Riggs, to the point where there is even a physical conflict. Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone) seeks to help Owen through his traumatic relationship with Riggs, although Owen does not accept the help offered to him by Amelia. This leads to Amelia feeling hurt and to her drinking, despite the fact that she is a recovering addict.

Casting

On January 23, 2014 it was reported that Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey had renewed their contracts for another two seasons, as Drs. Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd, respectively, meaning their characters would be staying on the medical drama for seasons 11 and 12. On April 24, 2015, Patrick Dempsey revealed that he would be leaving Grey's Anatomy after the eleventh season despite having a contract through another season. Thus, this will be the first season in which Dr. Derek Shepherd, portrayed by Patrick Dempsey, is not included in the main cast of characters. Dempsey's character Dr. Derek Shepherd was killed off towards the end of the eleventh season in the episode "How to Save a Life", meaning he will not return for the twelfth season as previously thought. ABC put out a statement claiming Dempsey wanted to pursue other interests.

On May 2, 2014, the rest of the six original cast mates, Justin Chambers, Chandra Wilson and James Pickens Jr., excluding Sandra Oh, renewed their contracts for another two seasons (11 and 12) as Drs. Alex Karev, Miranda Bailey, and Richard Webber, respectively. Sara Ramirez also renewed her contract for another two seasons as Dr. Callie Torres, which will run out after the twelfth season. However, it was later announced on May 20, 2016 that Sara Ramirez, who portrayed Callie Torres for ten seasons, would leave Grey's. Chambers announced on March 11, 2016, on Twitter that he will return as Dr. Alex Karev for the 13th season.

On June 5, 2015, it was announced that after several seasons of being a recurring role, Jason George was upgraded to a series regular. It was announced on June 15, 2015, that Martin Henderson, who played a doctor on the ShondaLand produced show Off the Map, would be added as a series regular for the twelfth season. He will make his debut in the middle of the season, according to Rhimes. On June 28, 2015, it was announced that Jessica Capshaw, whose contract expired after Season 11, had renewed her contract for another three seasons as Dr. Arizona Robbins. This means that her character will be staying on the show through seasons 12 as well as possible seasons 13 and 14.

It was announced on September 11, 2015 that Chasing Amy actress Joey Lauren Adams would guest star as Dr. Tracy McConnell, Dr. Bailey's opponent for Chief of Surgery, and appeared in the season premiere. TV veteran Bill Smitrovich was announced on November 12, 2015, to guest star as a therapist in the tenth episode of the season. After appearing as Dr. Andrew DeLuca as a guest star in the first eight episodes, Giacomo Gianniotti was upgraded to a series regular on January 8, 2016. It was announced on January 8, 2016 that Maya Stojan will appear in one episode as a guest star which later turned out to be Jackson's patient Tatiana whom he treated over several years. On February 26, 2016, it was announced that Casey Wilson and Rita Moreno would both guest star in episode fourteen of the season. Variety announced on March 8, 2016, that Wilmer Valderrama was cast as Kyle Diaz, a recurring role which he will play in a multi-episode arc.

Development

On May 7, 2015, ABC renewed Grey's Anatomy for a twelfth season for the 2015-16 television season. ABC president Paul Lee confirmed that the twelfth season would not be the final season, as he said "I would like to see it run for many, many years to come. It is powerful, vibrant brand with incredibly passionate audiences" Debbie Allen was promoted to executive producer for the twelfth season, and directed multiple episodes for the season while still recurring on camera as Dr. Catherine Avery. Production began on May 21, 2015, when Rhimes announced on Twitter that the writers were in full swing mapping the twelfth season. A promotional poster was released on September 16, 2015.

The season included the 250th episode named "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner", being the fifth episode. The cast of Grey's Anatomy had a special celebration for the 250th episode of the show with several actors sharing the celebration on Twitter on September 15, 2015. Jessica Capshaw revealed that the episode included her favorite scene so far in the season. Because of the annual Halloween television special It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, the twelfth season had a hiatus on October 29, 2015 following the 250th episode.

The remaining fall schedule for ABC was announced on November 16, 2015 where it was announced that Grey's Anatomy would air eight episodes in the fall with the fall finale to air on November 19, 2015, just like the rest of ABC's primetime lineup "TGIT" Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder, which was the same last year. The remaining 16 episodes will air after the winter break, beginning on February 11, 2016, and ending on May 19, 2016, as a result of ABC airing the television miniseries Madoff over two nights on February 3–4, 2016 in the same time-slot as Grey's Anatomy and Scandal. On March 3, 2016, ABC announced that Grey's Anatomy was renewed for a 13th season.

Writing

Regarding the death of Dr. Derek Shepherd, showrunner Shonda Rhimes commented on how future seasons would be affected by the death as she said: "Now, Meredith and the entire Grey’s Anatomy family are about to enter uncharted territory as we head into this new chapter of her life. The possibilities for what may come are endless. As Ellis Grey would say: the carousel never stops turning."

During an interview with TVLine, Shonda Rhimes said that the twelfth season will take "a much lighter tone" in the wake of Derek’s death. She continued talking about Meredith's evolvement as she said "Meredith is single, and she is living this life that she’s never thought she’d be living again. She’s living in a house with her sisters. She’s surrounded by women who are dating and having a whole life, and she’s not interested in all that. [Meredith is] starting to wonder is there a second life here or are your best years behind you? I guess the theme [of Season 12] is rebirth. That evolution for that character is beautiful".

Heigl's rumored return

Rumors began back in 2012 about a possible return of Katherine Heigl's character Izzie Stevens to Grey's Anatomy after Heigl expressed her desire to return for an arc to complete Izzie's story. In May 2015, rumors began to swirl that Heigl would return for the twelfth season. Michael Ausiello from TVLine speculated on the return as he thought the upcoming twelfth season would be the perfect opportunity for Heigl to return to the show. He wrote that "the show needs a jolt of old-school energy to improve its vitals going into Season 12, and an Izzie comeback would be just what the doctor ordered." Heigl declined the rumors of returning to the show's current season in an interview with Entertainment Tonight. At the ABC's Television Critics Association press tours, Rhimes declined the rumors as she explained her reasons: "I’m done with that story. I’ve turned that idea over in my mind a thousand times and thought about how it would go. And I don’t think so."

Ramirez's exit

The season marked the last appearance for long-time cast member Sara Ramirez who played Dr. Callie Torres on the series since 2006. Her character was involved in a custody battle with ex-wife Dr. Arizona Robbins, played by Jessica Capshaw, which led to the former's move to New York from Seattle. On May 19, in a note posted on Twitter after the season finale, Ramirez wrote that she was “taking some welcome time off.” Rhimes replied to the tweet by saying, “I will miss Callie tremendously, but am excited for what the future holds for Sara. She will always have a home at Shondaland.” Later, speaking at the Vulture Festival in New York City on May 22, Rhimes, told that she didn't know that Ramirez was leaving until they had shot the finale. She addressed Callie’s send-off and said, “This one was different because it wasn’t a big planned thing, I had a different plan going and when Sara came in and said, ‘I really need to take this break,’ I was lucky that we’d shot the end of the season with her going to New York.”

Filming

Prepping for the season began on July 13, 2015. The table read for the premiere was on July 15, 2015. Filming began on July 22, 2015. Two-time Academy Awards winner Denzel Washington was announced by TVLine to direct the ninth episode of the season, which will be Washington's first go at directing television. He previously directed the films Antwone Fisher and The Great Debaters .

Episodes

The number in the "No. overall" column refers to the episode's number within the overall series, whereas the number in the "No. in season" column refers to the episode's number within this particular season. "U.S. viewers in millions" refers to the number of Americans in millions who watched the episodes live.

Critical reception

NPR listed Grey's Anatomy as No. 7 on their list of the best television of 2015.

The A.V. Club's Caroline Siede described the twelfth season of Grey's Anatomy as "phenomenal", stating that the series underwent a "powerful renaissance this year". A final grade of B+ was given to the season.