The Grey's Anatomy Plot Twist Shonda Rhimes Regrets Writing

The long-running ABC series "Grey's Anatomy" may be a primetime medical drama, but in many ways, it has the heart of a soap opera. As such, it should come as no surprise that the show has had some truly wild plot twists over the course of its decades on the air. However, there's one, in particular, that even series creator and former head writer Shonda Rhimes admits may have been a bridge too far. One of the most heartbreaking moments on "Grey's Anatomy" came at the end of Season 2, when Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Denny Duquette died (and we do mean "heartbreaking" literally, considering his heart was the issue). 

But, surprisingly, that was actually not the last viewers saw of the character. Morgan reprised his role for a couple of guest appearances in Season 3, with Denny showing up as a spirit in the afterlife during Meredith Grey's (Ellen Pompeo) near-death experience. Morgan had an even more substantial role in "Grey's Anatomy" Season 5, throughout which Denny repeatedly appears as a hallucination to Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl). Years later, while filming a social media clip for "The Kelly Clarkson Show," Rhimes expressed buyer's remorse regarding how Denny's story continued after his death. 

When asked to name the "first, worst, and best" plot twists of her career, she singled out the character's ghostly "resurrection" as the worst. "I love that character on 'Grey's,' but we should not have brought him back from the dead," Rhimes acknowledged, adding, "I just like looking at him." To be fair, who among us doesn't like looking at Jeffrey Dean Morgan?

Though she later regretted the decision to bring Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Denny Duquette back into the "Grey's Anatomy" fold via rather unconventional means, it's not hard to see why doing so seemed like a good idea to series creator Shonda Rhimes at the time. After all, she famously had a hard time going through with Denny's emotional death in the first place. So, retroactively softening the blow a bit was no doubt appealing. This isn't even an isolated incident. Rhimes also notably regretted writing off the character of Dylan Young, played by Kyle Chandler — who reportedly pleaded with the creator to keep him around. Ultimately, though, you have to sympathize with her position. Sometimes, being a writer means making tough character decisions and standing by them.

As for Morgan, much like Chandler, he wasn't ready to say goodbye to "Grey's Anatomy" when it came time for Denny to shuffle off this mortal coil. "It was a grim day, let me tell you. [...] I'm still not over it. It broke my heart to leave that show," Morgan said of his exit from the hit medical drama, during a 2006 interview with the Los Angeles Times. But while the actor would have liked to stay on "Grey's Anatomy" a bit longer (and ultimately got his wish thanks to the twist Rhimes now regrets), he's still incredibly grateful. 

The actor really appreciates everything the show did for him and his career. "I knew how f***ing lucky I was to be there," the "Walking Dead" star confirmed on "Hot Ones" in 2021. "Being Denny, where I never got out of bed, is why Zack Snyder hired me to be the Comedian [in 'Watchmen,]'" he continued, "So that's how special that was."