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03/11/2020

It’s the end of an era – the Alex Karev era – on Grey’s Anatomy. Though Justin didn’t appear in episode 16.16 titled “Leave a Light on,” he did provide the voiceovers for Alex’s letters and this episode marked his series wrap.

I already shared my thoughts before, but I’ll reiterated my gratitude to Justin for his hard work and dedication to brilliantly playing Alex for 16 seasons and congratulate him for bringing to life a character who’s had a huge impact in the Grey’s universe and been an inspiration for fans around the world. I wish Justin all the very best in this new chapter of his life. ✨❤️

Following the airing of the episode, ABC released this “A Farewell to Alex Karev” video tribute.

 
Grey’s showrunner Krista Vernoff released this statement after the episode:

“It is nearly impossible to say goodbye to Alex Karev. That is as true for me and for all of the writers at Grey’s Anatomy as it is for the fans. We have loved writing Alex. And we have loved watching Justin Chambers’ nuanced portrayal of him. For 16 seasons, 16 years, we have grown up alongside Alex Karev. We have been frustrated by his limitations and we have been inspired by his growth and we have come to love him deeply and to think of him as one of our very best friends. We will miss him terribly. And we will always be grateful for his impact, on our show, on our hearts, on our fans, on the world.”

 
A few people who worked with Justin have mentioned him recently. Jesse Williams aka Dr. Jackson Avery speaking to Entertainment Tonight had this to say about the departure of Justin and Alex Karev:

“It can’t not reverberate. It’s such an incredible, impactful character,” Williams told ET on Wednesday in New York City while promoting his upcoming Broadway debut in Take Me Out on the aftermath of Alex’s departure. “I’ve always said that’s always been one of my favorite characters.”

Even with Chambers’ time on Grey’s over, his absence will be deeply felt for the foreseeable future, especially when it comes to Jo’s storyline moving forward.

[Justin’s] been one of the sweetest and funniest guys on set with me and everyone, certainly not just me. He’s a light and he’s so unassuming and chill as a person. And that character is specific and rooted and motivated,” the 38-year-old actor said. “Yeah, it’s a big departure and it will impact all of us and impact the relationships that form and sever as a result, for sure.”

 
Lisa Ann Walter posted this sweet story about the compliment Justin gave her when they worked together in the 350th episode (ep 16.08 “My Shot”). The full post can be read below but here is the Justin-related part.

“…Justin gave me probably one of the top two compliments I’ve ever received for my acting…
After shooting in the morning, Justin approached me on a break –
He had Camilla Luddington introduce him and said this: “I told Camilla I wanted to meet you because I wanted to tell you this-”
With that he faced me, taking both of my arms in his hands- looking into my eyes. “Your work inspired me. The scene in The Parent Trap – where you learn that one twin is the other… that’s one of the scenes that made me want to become an actor”. I gasped. “That’s the best compliment you could ever give me – besides that I’m a good mom”. We spoke more – about work and how it was when we were young actors. But I thought everyone should know what a kindness he did for me.
Our work isn’t easy. There are people in my industry who’ve gone out of their way to be kind… But this moment stood out – and I wanted to share. This is who Justin Chambers is.”

View this post on Instagram

I was in the last #GreysAnatomy with #JustinChambers aka #AlexKarev. When it aired, I posted a few pics with folks I’ve always loved – Debbie Allen directed (idol) – Kevin McKidd – one of my favorite actors since “Rome”, Chandra, Ellen. Lovely, kind people. In that post I mentioned that Justin gave me probably one of the top two compliments I’ve ever received for my acting. I didn’t say what he said. I’ll tell you now: After shooting in the morning, Justin approached me on a break – He had #camillaluddington introduce him and said this: “I told Camilla I wanted to meet you because I wanted to tell you this-“ With that he faced me, taking both of my arms in his hands- looking into my eyes. “Your work inspired me. The scene in The Parent Trap – where you learn that one twin is the other… that’s one of the scenes that made me want to become an actor”. I gasped. “That’s the best compliment you could ever give me – besides that I’m a good mom”. We spoke more – about work and how it was when we were young actors. But I thought everyone should know what a kindness he did for me. Our work isn’t easy. There are people in my industry who’ve gone out of their way to be kind. Richard Gere. @whoopigoldberg. Bob Urich. #DennisQuaid. #TomCruise. Many others. But this moment stood out – and I wanted to share. This is who @officialjustinchambers is. . Oh – the other greatest compliment was Steven Spielberg on yelling “Perfect take, Lisa! Perfect”! After I tried to get on the War of the Worlds boat. (Spoiler: I didn’t). . . . @greysabc #AlexKarev #Actors #Acting #Kindness #Inspiration @camillaluddington @michaeljmetzner . . . #goodheart @officialjustinchambers

A post shared by lisaannwalter (@lisaannwalter) on

 
Marika Dominczyk, who played Eliza Minnick in season 13, congratulated and wished Justin well with this post.



03/04/2020

This week’s episode of Grey’s Anatomy, titled “Leave a Light On,” will reveal the fate and be a farewell episode for Justin’s character, Alex Karev. The Hollywood Reporter says there won’t be any new footage of Justin/Alex in the episode and that his final appearance will continue to be the 350th episode that aired last November (episode 16.08). Check out the promo below featuring footage of Alex since the Grey’s pilot.



01/19/2020

In an article from PEOPLE, Justin says it was a hard decision to leave Grey’s Anatomy after 15 years. He’s looking forward to “life, family, love, and friendships,” and in terms of his career, he’s most interested right now in producing documentaries. Check out the article below.

Justin Chambers Speaks Out After Leaving Grey’s Anatomy: ‘It’s Been a Great Ride’

Justin Chambers has a lot to look forward to.

On Monday, days after the Grey’s Anatomy actor confirmed his exit from the ABC medical drama after 15 years, he addressed his difficult decision to leave the beloved Shondaland show and revealed what he wants to pursue next.

“I’m very excited [for this new chapter],” the actor told Page Six while leaving Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. “Of course [it was a hard decision]. Anywhere that you spend 15 years, it’s a big chunk of your life.”

When asked what he’s looking forward to, Chambers, 49, responded, “Life, family, love, and friendships.”

On Friday, ABC confirmed to PEOPLE that the original cast member had left Grey’s after starring as Dr. Alex Karev for 16 seasons. His final episode aired on Nov. 14, 2019, so he will not get a send-off episode.

“There’s no good time to say goodbye to a show and character that’s defined so much of my life for the past 15 years,” Chambers said in a statement to PEOPLE. “For some time now, however, I have hoped to diversify my acting roles and career choices. And, as I turn 50 and am blessed with my remarkable, supportive wife and five wonderful children, now is that time.”

He added, “As I move on from Grey’s Anatomy, I want to thank the ABC family, Shonda Rimes, original cast members Ellen Pompeo, Chandra Wilson and James Pickens, and the rest of the amazing cast and crew, both past and present, and, of course, the fans for an extraordinary ride.”

While the actor told Page Six he’s “taking it one day at a time,” he has an idea of his next career move.

“Producing documentaries, that’s what I’m most interested in right now,” Chambers told the outlet. “Grey’s has been very supportive of me and I’m very grateful and it’s been a great ride.”

 
 
Following Justin’s announcement, several people who worked with him over the years on Grey’s posted on social media about him. Check out the tweets and Instagram posts below. I also added a short description of what each person did on the show.

 
Elizabeth Reaser played Ava/Rebecca Pope, Alex’s patient and love interest in seasons 3 and 4.

 
Karin Gleason – Grey’s production staff, media talent coordinator & producer from seasons 1 – 13.

 
Lisa Ann Walter – played patient Shirley Gregory in season 16.

 
Rushi Kota – played Dr. Vik Roy in seasons 14 and 15.

 
Alex Blue Davis – has played Dr. Casey Parker since season 14.

 
Omar Leyva – played Luis Rivera (father of the patient Meredith committed insurance fraud for) in seasons recurred in seasons 15 and 16.

 
Cathryn Dylan – played Alex’s patient, Maxine, in season 12.



01/11/2020

This week ended with the news that Justin has left Grey’s Anatomy. His final episode already aired in November and it was the 350th episode (ep 16.08 titled “My Shot”).

This is Justin’s statement on his departure:

null“There’s no good time to say goodbye to a show and character that’s defined so much of my life for the past 15 years. For some time now, however, I have hoped to diversify my acting roles and career choices. And, as I turn 50 and am blessed with my remarkable, supportive wife and five wonderful children, now is that time. As I move on from Grey’s Anatomy, I want to thank the ABC family, Shonda, original cast members Ellen Pompeo, Chandra Wilson and James Pickens, and the rest of the amazing cast and crew, both past and present, and, of course, the fans for an extraordinary ride.”

 
This is kind of hard to do but I just wanted to briefly say something. As an Alex Karev fan since 2005, it’s been a privilege to have been on this extraordinary ride for 15 years. Words can’t even begin to express how much Alex has meant to me and to so many others. He is a complex and layered individual who has overcome so many hardships, and it resulted in the greatest character development of anyone on the show. The character and his journey resonated with people because he was portrayed truthfully and beautifully by such a talented actor. Grey’s owes much of its success to Justin devoting all these years to playing Alex. He has been an integral part of the show and by far a fan favorite. Not everyone can say they’re a part of TV history, or that they’re a pop culture icon, or that they’ve played a character that has inspired and given hope to so many, but Justin can (though he won’t because he’s humble like that). And at the end of it all, I (and I’m sure so many other fans) have so much love and appreciation for him and endless gratitude for his dedication to playing Alex Karev for 15 years.🙏❤️
Now a new chapter has begun, and I look forward to whatever Justin chooses to do next.✨



10/16/2019

So, here’s what has been going on lately. JCO moved to another server and it caused several problems on the site, such as not being able to make posts and the photo archive being invisible. I’m now able to make posts (clearly), the archive is visible again, but there’s an issue with seeing the full-sized photos. Just letting you know it’s being worked on. Once that problem is solved, I’ll post links to the new material added to the archive.
Sorry for the inconvenience, but it’s been complicated to say the least. 😣

I’ve been updating JCO’s social media accounts with the Grey’s synopses, photos, sneak peeks & promos, so you can get all that on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

 
In the meantime, I’ll leave the synopsis and promo for this Thursday’s episode of Grey’s titled “It’s Raining Men.”

“It’s Raining Men” – After Meredith inadvertently stirs up negative press for Grey Sloan, she tries to make things right with her former colleagues, jeopardizing her community service hours. Station 19’s Ben and Vic bring a young woman into the hospital, and Jackson stands up to Koracick when he goes too far with a patient’s family. Meanwhile, Bailey receives unexpected news; and Owen finds himself at Pac-North Gen, which Alex sees as a recruiting opportunity on “Grey’s Anatomy,” THURSDAY, OCT. 17 (8:00-9:01 p.m. EDT), on ABC.

 
 
To wrap this update, this Wednesday, the Grey’s Anatomy cast, crew, producers (including creator Shonda Rhimes) along with the President of ABC Entertainment celebrated another milestone – the 350th episode! Congratulations to everyone on Grey’s! 🎉👏
Check out a few pics from the celebration in the IG post below (swipe/click for the pics). When the archive is fully back, I’ll make a more complete post about the 350th episode celebration including these photos in high quality.😉



09/21/2019

We’re days away from the September 26th season premiere of Grey’s Anatomy, and we’ve got a bit more footage and news about Alex Karev in season 16.

★ In an interview with E!, showrunner Krista Vernoff mentions Justin and talks about what’s ahead of Alex. Check out what she had to say before and read the full interview at the link.

Grey’s Anatomy Season 16 Is About the Consequences Of the Romantic Comedy

Richard and Alex: Richard and Alex may not have exactly committed the same crime Mer did, but they’re fired for knowing about it. This results in both comedy and drama. 
“Jim [Pickens] and Justin [Chambers] are very funny this season, and it’s not just comedy. This show lives in that dramedy place, so there are dramatic ramifications and consequences, particularly for Richard. It’s a dramatic shift to be fired from the place that you’ve worked all these years, and to have your wife sit by and not do anything about you being fired. So there are dramatic consequences for sure, but there’s a lot of comedy surrounding it.”

Jo and Alex: Jo (Camilla Luddington) committed herself at the end of last season, and Vernoff says the season “follow[s] through on that story in away that feels really beautiful and honest to me.” 
“We play a little bit of it in the season premiere and then we play a little bit more of it a few episodes into the season, and I feel really hopeful for Jo and Alex because she’s addressing her mental health, but that can be frightening for Alex because he has a history of women in his life with mental health problems,” Vernoff says, reminding us of Alex’s mother and ex. “So for sure as we head into our season, Alex is shaken up and it’s hard to know exactly where they’re going to land.” 

 

★ ABC released an extended promo for the Grey’s season premiere and it has more Justin/Alex in it.

 

★ Finally, ABC also posted a behind the scenes video from episode 15.06 titled “Flowers Grow Out of My Grave” showing Justin and Camilla Luddington shooting a hallway scene.



09/06/2019

★ As many of you noticed, the site was down for quite a while due to technical issues. However, those issues have mostly been resolved now and, hopefully, new ones won’t come up. Sorry for the inconvenience of that down time, but JCO is back now. 🙂

★ Production on season 16 of Grey’s Anatomy started in late July and the premiere is on Thursday, September 26. The season premiere is titled “Nothing Left to Cling To.”

TVLine published a Fall TV preview for Grey’s featuring a photo of a scene between Alex Karev and Richard Webber at the loft.

 

ABC also released a promo for the season premiere. Check it out:

 

★ And finally, Camilla Luddington posted this photo of herself and Justin styled as 16-year-olds in the 80’s as a play on Grey’s 16th season starting later this month.