Grey’s Anatomy found a way to focus on romance — with some help from returning cast members Scott Speedman and Sophia Bush — amid two life-threatening surgeries and a no-sex pact.
During the Thursday, October 23, episode of the hit ABC series, Nick (Speedman) returned alongside girlfriend Meredith (Ellen Pompeo). Viewers got to see Nick interact with Meredith’s son, who seemed to trust him a lot.
Nick and Meredith’s sweet romance moments were refreshing compared to the more complicated situations in the hospital. Nick specifically found himself preparing for a high-risk lung transplant that caused him to be at odds with Winston (Anthony Hill). They were able to successfully save a little boy while Bailey (Chandra Wilson) had to operate on a patient whose cancer ended up spreading to other parts of her body.
Speaking of love lives, Winston clearly shared a connection with Jules (Adelaide Kane) that hinted at something more down the line. Then there was Teddy (Kim Raver), who ran into Cassie (Bush) after the former’s split from Owen (Kevin McKidd).
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Teddy appeared to struggle with her new normal as a single mom. But thanks to an emotional conversation with Jo (Camilla Luddington), Teddy reunited with Cass and they drove off to a date.
Speedman’s return comes after he rejoined the cast as a recurring character in season 20 and has remained on Grey’s Anatomy since then. Speedman, 50, originally joined Grey’s Anatomy as a guest star in season 14. He then appeared as a main cast member in seasons 18 and 19 as Meredith’s love interest before taking a break from the show.
“[The fans] have lots of thoughts. I thought it was gonna be a layup, me coming onto the show,” Speedman said on SiriusXM’s The Spotlight With Jessica Shaw in October 2024. “I’m not a big social media guy, but I remember going on after my first episodes debuted with her, and they tease like, ‘There’s this character coming back to the show.’”
He continued: “And the fans, you know, on social media were not … There was a lot of vomit emojis, which I was like, ‘Oh, alright, alright.’”
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Speedman noted that all he could do was “laugh at” the public response, adding, “It’s really funny how serious they are about that character, and who’s with that character and who’s not with that character.”
The actor’s guest appearance also comes after Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) chose to take a sabbatical while grieving the death of Monica Beltran (Natalie Morales). Deadline subsequently reported that Scorsone’s break will last until 2026. The outlet noted that the decision to cut back on Scorsone’s appearances came amid a cost-saving measure.
Grey’s Anatomy is already reducing the minimum guarantees for its veteran cast members to 14 out of the show’s 18 episodes per season. While some of Grey’s Anatomy‘s consistent stars won’t appear in four episodes each, Scorsone’s absence was doubled.
Grey’s Anatomy airs on ABC Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET before streaming the next day on Hulu.
