After 19 seasons and more than 400 episodes,Ellen Pompeois ready to move on from Meredith Grey ofGrey’s Anatomy. Pompeo has portrayed the character since 2005, and it was confirmed late last year that the actress will be taking a step back as a series regular. Meredith’s exit on the show will be gradually executed, and Midori Francis saw it first hand.
As Ellen Pompeo bids goodbye to the show as a series regular, newly added cast member Midori Francis is thankful that she gets to be a part of her farewell moments to the show. Francis tellsPEOPLE, “To know that she was taking a step back as a series regular and that we were going to get to be a part of that closing chapter of one phase of this iconic character”
Pompeo’s Meredith Grey has inspired a lot of people and for Francis, the actress leaving the show is a big milestone, she said, “It was awesome that we got to be the new intern, but we got to be a part of that. That’s so cool. I mean, this show has meant so much to so many people, so to be there for such a big milestone was awesome.”
Joining the longest-running primetime medical drama is also a big milestone for Francis. The 28-year-old actress never thought she’d be able to joinGrey’s Anatomyas one of the new bloods on the series.
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As soon as Francis joined the show as Dr. Mika Yasuda in the latest season, the actress has felt the warmth on set. Newcomers might feel intimidated considering most of the people on set had been working together for almost two decades, but the cast and crew made sure that Francis felt welcome.
The actress revealed that she even got valuable advice from Camilla Luddington. She recalls, “She was just reminding us that the fans have been with the show for so long, and they’re so attached to these characters, and that sometimes it takes some time for them to warm up to new characters and new situations.”
Luddington is sharing from her own experience as the actress also joined the show when it was already fairly established. Camilla Luddington joined in season 9 as Dr. Jo Wilson and has been with the show since.
Francis took note of Luddington’s advice and admitted that it did help relieve her anxiety. She said, “And so [she said] to focus on the work and not necessarily the external reaction, which I think was really nice. Coming in and just having that expectation made [it] less scary. Like, ‘This could happen but it’s not the end of the world.’ So that was good.”
