Why Ellen Pompeo Almost Passed On Grey's Anatomy Might Surprise You

Ellen Pompeo owes a huge thank you to the medics at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. The star's main claim to fame is her role on "Grey's Anatomy," where she's played the titular Meredith Grey for 18 seasons — but it's one that fans might be surprised to hear the actor almost turned down.

"Grey's Anatomy" first established its place as one of the most watched medical dramas in March 2005 thanks to show creator Shonda Rhimes. Since then, the show has garnered more than 12 million viewers, 300 (and counting) episodes, and it's considered ABC's No. 2 drama, per The Hollywood Reporter. "I've written the end of that series, I want to say, a good eight times," Rhimes admitted to Variety in November. The creator released herself from her showrunner duties back in 2017. "I was like, 'And that will be the end!' Or, 'That'll be the final thing that's ever said or done!' And all of those things have already happened. So I give up on that, you know what I mean?"

While Rhimes has given up on when to end the drama series, Pompeo seemingly hasn't, telling Entertainment Tonight she's been "trying to get away for years." Pompeo continued, "I have strong relationships at the network and they have been very, very good to me, and have incentivized me to stay." It wasn't just network execs who had to convince Pomepo into staying at "Grey's Anatomy," though, as the actor revealed she had to be talked into the role in the first place.

The moment Ellen Pomeo first signed on to play Meredith Grey in ABC's hit drama "Grey's Anatomy," the actor claims she "knew [she] was f*****."

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Pompeo looked back on the year she auditioned for the drama series and how her agent at the time, Rick Kurtzman, had to convince the star to go for the role of Meredith Grey. "I was like, 'I'm not going to be stuck on a medical show for five years,'" Pompeo said. "'Are you out of your f***** mind? I'm an actress.'" In 2004, the actor was experiencing a new low in her career, which left Pompeo completely broke. Luckily for the star, Kurtzman would tell Pompeo to try for "Grey's Anatomy" to help pay the bills, leading the actor to eventually become the highest-earning drama actor. "Decide what you think you're worth and then ask for what you think you're worth," show creator Shonda Rhimes recalls telling Pompeo when it came to her contract. "Nobody's just going to give it to you." 

The show signed a new deal with Pompeo in 2017, giving the actor $20 million a year including $575,000 per episode, "equity points on the series," and a couple million as a signing bonus, per The Hollywood Reporter. Pompeo's journey to securing her big paycheck wasn't an easy one, though, with the actor opening up about how she fought for her worth and how former co-star Patrick Dempsey got in the way.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Ellen Pompeo revealed it wasn't until Patrick Dempsey's departure from "Grey's Anatomy" in 2015 that the actor started feeling respected when it came to her paycheck.

"They could always use him as leverage against me — 'We don't need you; we have Patrick' — which they did for years," Pompeo revealed. "There were many times where I reached out about joining together to negotiate, but he was never interested in that. At one point, I asked for $5,000 more than him just on principle, because the show is 'Grey's Anatomy' and I'm Meredith Grey. They wouldn't give it to me." The actor went on to admit she considered walking away, but she was not "going to let a guy drive [her] out of [her] own house." Pompeo finally got the pay she deserved after show creator Shonda Rhimes used her power to add the actor on as a producer. "She was like, 'I absolutely want to keep the show going. It's the mothership, so let's find a way to make you happy."

Despite the contract, Pompeo is still trying to run away from "Grey's Anatomy." The actor told Insider in December she had "been trying to focus on convincing everybody that it should end." The actor continued, "​I feel like I'm the super naive one who keeps saying, 'But what's the story going to be, what story are we going to tell?' And everyone's like, 'Who cares, Ellen? It makes a gazillion dollars.'"