Sorry, I know in the age of social media and the 24-hour news cycle, I’m supposed to be over the Shonda Rhimes/NYT article. But I feel like the paper and the writer got off way too easy.
One of Shonda’s more rant-y characters (by her own estimation) is Meredith Grey aka Ellen Pompeo, who just announced on Twitter that she’s welcomed a second child. I quit Grey’s years ago but I have always liked Ellen Pompeo. She’s smart, she’s funny, she has a Boston accent and she is tactful while still being honest. Going back to this 2013 interview, where she talks about the pragmatism and perks of being on TV, it’s clear that she has seen the other side of the fence and isn’t keen to compete in the hyper-competitive movie environment. Grey’s Anatomy is a gift and she knows it. She’s very loyal to Shonda and in the birth announcement tweet, she thanks the Shondaland team for keeping the baby news under wraps for a few weeks.
A new baby might explain why, during a BuzzFeed Facebook chat with Shonda’s leading women (Kerry and Viola), Ellen said she feels very sated with her work on Grey’s and might not continue acting when her run ends (she has another two seasons). It’s hard to talk “quitting” and not sound like an asshole – how many 40-somethings can retire (with a few mortgage-free houses and residual cheques)? But I think Ellen has a unique perspective because she has seen first-hand what happens when you think you are too good for TV and eschew your commitments for a movie career. A few flops and you can end up back where you started with your tail between your legs. Even worse? You can be cast out of Shondaland.
(Lainey: it cracks me up that she only refers to her husband as “Chris Ivery”, full name all the time.)
