Much like Blue Kwan did to a patient during Grey’s Anatomy’s recently wrapped 22nd season, the medical drama injected something unexpected into our day Tuesday. However, rather than dosing us with an experimental drug to cure our greatest maladies, this breaking news has left viewers with a lot of questions. A Texas-based spinoff is coming to ABC, premiering in midseason 2027, and fans have some strong opinions.
The as-yet-untitled Grey’s Anatomy spinoff will not revolve around an existing character, Deadline reports, but there will be connections, possibly to Debbie Allen’s Catherine Fox. The series will be set in rural West Texas at a medical center presumably smaller than Seattle’s Grey Sloan Memorial. The announcement sent several Grey’s Anatomy fans spiraling on Reddit, including Khajiit-ify, who is asking some good questions:
This was not on my bingo card at ALL. New spinoff with no direct ties to current characters? Shonda actually acknowledging the show and participating in this spinoff?? A more rural area hospital as the focus instead of cutting edge bullshit???!!! Not to mention does this mean Grey's or 911 is going to move off Thursdays? … This just raised so many questions.
Why Shonda Rhimes and Meg Marinis have teamed up for a small-town spinoff with no familiar characters is unknown, but the scheduling was addressed in the announcement. With Grey’s Anatomy facing budget cuts, it appears Season 23 will share its timeslot with the spinoff, with the flagship series premiering this fall on the 2026 TV schedule and the new series taking over in 2027.
Logistics aside, some Grey’s Anatomy fans had some hilarious reactions to the spinoff news, including:
- I bet Warren will look for a new job for this spin off – FuzseaFlow9706
- Isn’t there already a show called "Nobody Wants This"? – eddane1
- Remember when Owen had that one episode last season where he worked at a small hospital? Shonda has the opportunity to do the funniest thing – CaptainVesta
That last comment references Kim Raver and Kevin McKidd’s exit from Grey’s Anatomy in the Season 22 finale, with their family moving to Paris so Teddy can accept a job. It would have been hilarious to pull one over on fans like and make it Paris, Texas, rather than France, but then again, I don't want a Teddy/Owen spinoff, and also, that movie already exists on Netflix, too.
There were some other interesting takeaways from fans in the Reddit comments, including how a Boston spinoff would have made more sense, and questions about why they’re not centering the show around Levi Schmitt, who left Seattle for Texas in Season 21. Other reactions included:
- Rural Texas - going for the Yellowstone viewing demo there. – balthazar_edison
- This is so random, totally left field for ABC to order another spin-off when the main show is facing budget cuts – Skyboy-14
- Just end it already – SuddenDepact
- I asked for a Boston spinoff with Avery and Kepler not a yeehaw spinoff 😭😭 – Loose-Fisherman3695
This Texas-based series will be the third spinoff in the Grey’s Anatomy universe after Private Practice and Station 19, and regardless of all the questions this wild announcement has injected into our lives, I’m really excited to learn more as more details become available.
For now, you can stream all 22 seasons of Grey’s, as well as its two existing spinoffs, with a Hulu subscription. The first 21 seasons are also available with a Netflix subscription, with Season 22 coming June 6.
