Ellen Pompeo Let Katherine Heigl Know If She’d Return To “Grey’s Anatomy” Upon Leaving After 19 Seasons, And What She Had To Say Was Surprising

Ellen Pompeo may have just left Grey’s Anatomy earlier this year after 19 seasons starring on the show, but that hasn’t stopped her from already thinking about a return to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.

On Tuesday, Ellen had a candid interview with her former Grey’s costar, Katherine Heigl, for Variety’s Actors on Actors series.

The two former costars discussed a plethora of topics, including Katherine’s exit from the show after Season 6, as well as Ellen coining the popular phrase “pick me, choose me, love me” on the series.

Within their wide-ranging conversation, Ellen dropped an admission that she might not be done with her days at Grey’s just yet.

She left the show earlier this year with her character Meredith Grey heading off to Boston to research Alzheimer’s disease. It was when detailing this final send-off that Ellen mentioned Meredith might make a return to the show’s iconic Seattle hospital setting.

“I will be making some appearances hopefully next year, if I can find some time,” Ellen said.

This prompted Katherine, who left the show in 2010, to note Ellen's departure this year was then not a complete goodbye.

“No, it’s not a complete goodbye,” Ellen said. “And I think we’ve got an interesting story to tell.”

This news is not a total surprise, as Deadline previously reported in March about a door remaining open for Ellen's return to the show.

Ahead of any possible return to Grey’s, Ellen is off to shoot a new show for Hulu, titled The Orphan. Not too much is known just yet about the show, but it’ll be the actor’s first major leading TV role outside of Grey’s in nearly 20 years.

“I haven’t played another character in 18 years. That’s crazy — crazy town, crazy town,” she said.