The season 22 midseason finale of Grey’s Anatomy left pregnant Jo’s fate up in the air — and fans are now worried she might now make it after undergoing a premature C-section.
While Link (Chris Carmack) was on the mend after nearly dying, Jo’s (Camilla Luddington) water broke seven weeks early. She wasn’t in labor, but she did show signs of possible heart issues. It was then revealed that Jo’s heart muscle was getting weaker and bigger, which would make it difficult for her to safely carry the twins to full term.
Jo was forced to undergo surgery when her condition worsened. She needed to have a pump placed in her chest with Winston (Anthony Hill) performing the operation. Amid the procedure, Jo’s heart started to fail and no fetal heartbeats were heard for either baby, forcing Winston to perform an emergency C-section. Jo’s fate was unclear and according to certain fan theories, Jo might survive the surgery — but her infants could not.
“I think Jo will survive, but one of the twins might die or be close to dying,” a fan wrote via Reddit. “I could see there being some tension/drama between Link and Winston or Jo and Winston if they found out he did the c section and something ended up going wrong with one or both of the twins.”
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Another prediction hinged on Winston blaming himself for the outcome of the procedure. “I think it’s probably gonna be one twin stillborn or perhaps one twin is in the NICU for awhile before passing,” another fan guessed..
There was a subsection of viewers that were more worried about Jo and Link, with someone suggesting, “I think worse comes to worse one of the babies may pass but something tells me they’re about to boot Jo and Link.”
Viewers have to wait until January 8 to find out how every story gets concluded. Jo’s severe health scare came after fans were originally worried that Grey’s Anatomy would opt for a fictional bloodbath courtesy of the season 21 hospital explosion.
“I’ve had conversations with some of the cast, but they all know it’s a Grey’s Anatomy cliffhanger and they know every year they never know what to expect. They’re here for it. They like to keep our stories exciting and fresh,” showrunner Meg Marinis told The Hollywood Reporter in May. “But even in the last two seasons with what you saw this year, we had to reduce the cast a little bit [because of industry-wide budget cuts], and everybody has very passionate feelings about their favorite characters.”
She continued: “But if we can get the writers upset then we know we’re doing it right. It’s not as satisfying a story if people aren’t upset when someone leaves. It’s supposed to make people upset and sad, so I’m sure there’ll be some arguments. But I’ve been persuaded before to change my mind on things.”
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It was previously reported that original cast members Chandra Wilson and James Pickens Jr. were contracted to return for the season. Kevin McKidd, Kim Raver, Caterina Scorsone and Luddington, 42, were also under contract to appear — if their characters aren’t written off.
Luddington, meanwhile, exclusively told Us Weekly in the past that she “had no idea” what would happen on screen.
“I have no idea. I have a text chain going on with so many cast members that are like, ‘What do you think?’ And we — nobody knows. No one knows, which is terrifying,” she shared in June about playing Joe since season 9 but always being worried about her character’s future. “We’ve seen too much, and we know too much. There’s not a single season I’m not worried about.”
Grey’s Anatomy returns to ABC Thursday, January 8, at 10 p.m. ET before streaming the next day on Hulu.
