As rumors continue to swirl surrounding ABC possibly canceling Grey's Anatomy instead of renewing it for Season 18, the producers are continuing to populate Season 17 with familiar faces from the hit drama's past. (Even while sometimes killing other longtime characters off.) The next big return will be from Sarah Drew, whose April Kepner will be back in a limited capacity for an episode airing later this season. Thankfully, fans didn't have to wait until her episode's premiere in order to get a hint of April's reunion with Jesse Williams' Jackson Avery.
Looks like Sarah Drew has no problem getting everyone pumped to see April and Jackson together again, even if it's not a permanent fix. Check out her picture-perfect Instagram post below, which fans were absolutely ecstatic to see.
Grey's Anatomy fans first said farewell to Sarah Drew's April at the end of Season 14, which capped off a nine-season run for the character. Almost immediately after the character left, fans started calling for Japril reunions, despite the fact that April and Jackson are divorced now. A lot of people want that situation to be rectified, though I'm not sure Drew's guest spot will be enough to justify that kind of major relationship reversal. But maybe! Do I hear spinoff bells? Do spinoffs have bells? Maybe Japril can make that happen.
To be sure, Jesse Williams wasn't letting Sarah Drew have all the fun in getting fans' hopes up. He actually posted a quick, yet amusing, Instagram video of their big reunion. You can check it out below!
No big details have been revealed surrounding Sarah Drew's return to Grey's Anatomy, but showrunner Krista Vernoff is hopefully setting things up to give fans a surprise or two in that episode. One such surprise would be if April isn't the only big former star that will show up, as we know the rest of this season will also feature more long-gone characters popping up on Meredith's beach. We'll also see Patrick Dempsey's McDreamy returning once more before it's all said and done, but the other arrivals are a mystery for the moment.
Since exiting Grey's Anatomy, Sarah Drew has kept busy with other projects. She's starred in TV movies for both Lifetime and Hallmark, and yes, they were both Christmas-themed films. Her next big TV role will be on Freeform's Cruel Summer, where she'll recur as the mother of the most popular girl at school, and their family life will definitely be a troubled one that inspires much town gossip. Freeform shares a parent company with ABC, so here's hoping that synergy allows for Drew to maintain her Grey's Anatomy connections for more reunions in the future.
After killing off a major character in its midseason premiere, Grey's Anatomy is back for more crossovers with Station 19 every Thursday night on ABC at 9:00 p.m. ET.
