Entertainment Weekly posted a new article where Justin, Ellen Pompeo and Grey’s Anatomy creator and executive-producer, Shonda Rhimes, discuss what’s coming up for Alex and Meredith’s friendship in the new season. They also give their thoughts about the possibility of the two characters’ relationship going from platonic to romantic.

As Grey’s Anatomy heads into season 13, the ABC medical drama is shifting focus back to the remaining original characters, Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) and Alex (Justin Chambers) included. The duo are the last of the Fab Five, with their friendship only strengthening over time — so much so that many viewers have rooted for the pair to actually get together, especially in the wake of Derek’s death.

“I was not surprised,” executive producer Shonda Rhimes tells EW of fans wanting to see an Alex and Mer relationship. “We did the dinner party episode, and Meredith and Alex sat on the floor in her bedroom, and they had that great, amazing scene together, and I watched that scene and I thought, ‘Oh, people are going to start ‘shipping Meredith and Alex,’ because there’s such a sense of comfort and nostalgia. They’re easy and wonderful together.”

But Rhimes recognizes that not everyone would want to see the friends together. “If you talk to Ellen and Justin they’ll go, ‘Ew!’ because they’re like brother and sister,” Rhimes says. “But I think it’s because those two actual people have 13 years of history together. They’re very, very much intertwined; they’re family. So it feels really easy like family, and there’s something beautiful about that.”

Chambers concurs: “It did surprise me, because I never saw that happening. I know we did an episode where it was like ‘What if?’ so we got to see a little bit of it, but yeah, it’s surprising. It’s interesting. Hey, this is Shondaland, you know? Anything’s possible!”

With that in mind, season 13 will shine a light on Meredith and Alex’s friendship in the wake of Alex shockingly beating DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti) within an inch of his life, believing the intern was making a move on Jo (Camilla Luddington) in the finale. “Anytime someone who you’re very close to does something really out of character it rocks your whole world, because you think you know someone so well,” Pompeo says. “It’s really damaging on so many levels. An interesting storyline to play this year is not really knowing who Alex is. You think people have come so far. There’s that adage that people don’t change, but people do change. I believe people change — some people can change, some people can’t, and then some people change and then revert back, so there’s all different shades of gray. It’ll be fun to play.”

For Alex, he will regress to the gruff character of the early days. “People who are hurt revert to their less mature selves a lot of the time, and I think that he is hurt and he doesn’t quite know how to cope with that,” Rhimes says. “What I love is that he and Meredith are trying to get through it together, and she’s trying to take care of him, and he’s trying to take care of her, and at times they don’t appreciate each other’s methods.”

“She’s covering for him,” Chambers adds. “Blood’s thicker than water, but they’re not even blood, they are like siblings. I think she’ll do the right thing, but if Alex does, that’s another question. Alex is pretty complicated at times.”

All that said, would Rhimes ever consider pairing Meredith and Alex on a romantic level? “I’ve learned to never say never at this point,” Rhimes says. “I always thought the show would end at season 2, 3, 4 or 5. So every time I would say, ‘This is definitely going to be what’s happening,’ then we keep going and the story grows. Then everyone gets mad because I said something was definitely going to happen. So I’m never going to say never at this point.”

 
Check out this quick peak of Alex and Meredith in the season premiere. Countdown is on…

Once again, Justin will be attending the “WordTheatre In The Schools” benefit.

WITS program aims to connect under-served youth with curriculum relevant literature. Comprised of professional actors and authors whose profile and work ensures that their readings will resonate with students, the WITS program is both engaging and inspiring.

 
The benefit will take place at a private home in Studio City, CA on Wednesday, September 21st from 7 – 10pm with the performance at starting at 8:30pm.

TICKETS can be purchased at this LINK.

For more information, please check the event’s page at WordTheatre.

The guest list at the moment includes: Author Brian Doyle, ‘Supa Lowery Brothers Band, World Class Pianist – Inna Faliks, JK Simmons, Edi Gathegi, Justin Chambers, Carla Gugino, Ed Weeks, Jackson Rathbone, Jason George, Bellamy Young, Fred Melamed, Rya Kihlstedt, Leslie Nicol and Bruce Vilanch.

★ Check out the extended promo for the season 13 premiere of Grey’s Anatomy on September 22nd.

 
★ Here are a couple of pics from last Sunday (Sept. 11) of Justin at the Bright Spot Diner cuddling a beagle named Alice (aww!), and later at Vons.

 
★ Finally, you can check out this article about Alex Karev by Buzzfeed (link in the tweet).

We’re a little over a week away from the season 13 premiere of Grey’s Anatomy, and with that many previews are coming out. Here’s a roundup of the Grey’s season 13 previews.

★ I added scans of Entertainment Weekly‘s Fall preview for Grey’s Anatomy to the gallery. Click on the thumbnails for the album.

 
★ Here is a bit more from Entertainment Weekly, about what’s coming for Alex and Jo in Justin’s words.

Something about Jolex’s storyline on Grey’s Anatomy? I love them so much. — Giusina

It won’t be long before Alex finds out that Jo Wilson isn’t who she says she is. “Obviously, he’s going to find out why she can’t marry him,” Justin Chambers says. “I don’t know where that takes them from there, but he’s hurt, and he’s angry, and he’s wrong, but he’s also right.” Unfortunately for Alex, Jo will have a very strong reaction to what he did. More on that here.

 
★ This is the Grey’s preview from Yahoo! TV.

‘Grey’s Anatomy’ (Sept. 22, 8 p.m., ABC)
This Season’s Theme: Relationship drama! Camilla Luddington, who plays intern Jo Wilson, says that the premiere picks up right where the Season 12 finale left off: with Alex (Justin Chambers) just having beaten DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti) to a pulp after finding him with Jo and believing the worst. “Dealing with the aftermath is probably the central storyline,” she says of the beginning of Season 13. And then there’s a love triangle brewing with Meredith (Ellen Pompeo), sister Maggie (Kelly McCreary), and Riggs (Martin Henderson).

Where We Left Off: Owen (Kevin McKidd) and Amelia (Caterina Scorsone) got married, and April (Sarah Drew) gave birth to her baby with Jackson (Jesse Williams). Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) made peace with Callie (Sara Ramirez), who moved to New York with her girlfriend.

Coming Up: The Alex mess is going to weigh heavily on the entire staff of Grey Sloan. “There will be ramifications,” Luddington warns. “There’s no way to hide what happened.” Meredith, meanwhile, has a more lighthearted storyline. “There’s a little bit of a love triangle, although I feel like Meredith doesn’t want to admit it,” she says. “It’s a lot of fun. With Grey’s, even in the midst of the darkest storylines, they bring another element of comedy somewhere else.” And let’s not forget the newlyweds! “Amelia and Owen just got married and what does married life look life for two very complicated people who really jumped into it?” Luddington teases.

Career Counseling: Even as Jo grapples with the aftermath of Alex’s violent episode, she’s still trying to find her place in the hospital. “Of anybody, Jo was connected to Callie, so Jo definitely has to find her place and her specialty,” she says. “We see Stephanie (Jerrika Hinton) in neuro, and I think Jo wants that for herself. So this season, I think we’ll see Jo finding a mentor, because she lost the person who may have been that.”

 
★ Next up, is the Grey’s preview from TV Line.

The Meredith/Nathan/Maggie triangle will go from kinda weird to flat-out awkward as Maggie’s crush on McHottie shows no sign of letting up. Nathan, of course, is more interested in jumpstarting her widowed sister’s heart, leaving a still-relationship-resistant Mer caught smack right in the middle (what else is new!). Elsewhere, Jo’s abusive ex-boyfriend, er, husband will remain an off-screen presence through at least the early fall as she and Alex grapple with the repercussions of his scary pummeling of Andrew. Jackson and April, meanwhile, make a valiant attempt to stay in the Friend Zone while raising their new baby. Good luck with that, kids.

BONUS SPOILER!: As previously reported, Arizona will be MIA the first two episodes; an early episode will reference her being in New York doing the co-parenting thing with Callie.

RETURN DATE: Thursday, Sept. 22 at 8/7c (ABC)

In an article published by Entertainment Weekly, Shonda Rhimes (creator and executive producer of Grey’s Anatomy) explains that the show will tackle the issue of domestic violence in season 13. The issue will be explored through Jo Wilson’s (played by Camilla Luddington) backstory as a woman who ran away from her abusive husband, and her relationship with Alex who grew up with domestic violence.
Read below what Shonda and Justin had to say about the story.

Heading into its 13th season, Grey’s Anatomy will be shining a light on the topic of domestic violence.

At the close of season 12, Jo (Camilla Luddington) turned down Alex’s proposal, scared to confess that she couldn’t marry him because she was already wed. In truth, her name isn’t even Jo Wilson, and she had run away from an abusive husband. Season 13 picks up in the aftermath of Alex (Justin Chambers) pummeling DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti) following what was ultimately a miscommunication resulting from Jo’s reveal. As Alex faces the consequences of his actions both at the hospital and within his relationship, Jo’s backstory will finally unfurl.

“I don‘t think that I ever think about doing things, like, ‘Oh, we’re doing a domestic violence story as an issue,’” Shonda Rhimes tells EW. “It felt like it was time to tell Jo’s story, and it felt like it was time to tell Jo’s story especially in the context of Alex, who he is and how he grew up. Alex is so defined by who he used to be and who he is trying to become, and so is Jo.”

It’s that commonality over rising above their scrappy upbringings that initially brought Alex and Jo together — and could now ultimately drive them a part. “They bonded over their past,” Chambers says, “and to leave that part of her past out, that’s a pretty big piece of her puzzle. So I think he’s going to feel very betrayed.”

The storyline is part and parcel of Grey’s Anatomy putting focus on the remaining original characters — check out photos of season 13 here — including Alex, Meredith (Ellen Pompeo), Bailey (Chandra Wilson) and Webber (James Pickens Jr). “Meredith will always be the nucleus because she’s the voice, but to have the four originals still is pretty amazing,” Chambers says.

Truly, this is a storyline that’s several years in the making. Longtime Grey’s Anatomy viewers may remember Jo’s former fling Jason Myers a.k.a Chest Peckwell (The Originals’ Charles Michael Davis), who landed in the hospital severely beaten after he hit Jo — which makes a lot more sense now knowing her history. “That concept is something that we’ve — the writers — have talked about for years, and have always been like, ‘Is this the right time? Is this the right time?’” Rhimes says. “We’ve been trying to figure out when to deploy that. It felt right at this moment in time because Jo’s backstory has always been very intriguing to us, and this idea that she is now fully who she says she is, and that she is somebody who has reinvented herself.”

“I love her as being somebody who has reinvented herself,” Rhimes continues. “I also love her as being somebody who has overcome a lot of really, really bad things to make something of her life. She’s a survivor. The idea that she’s a survivor and that very act of being that person is threatening to that relationship is interesting. The fact that Alex is a guy who his response is to beat somebody up is a little problematic.”

What’s also problematic is that Jo’s husband is still out there, and viewers may even get to meet him this season. “Meredith suffered a violent attack last year and very much overcame it,” Rhimes says. “This idea that women are often treated in this way is disturbing to me, but it’s also very interesting to me to get to tell the story of Jo from this perspective of somebody who has walked away from a past that happened so long ago, and might have to face it again.”

★ Here it is! The first official photo of Justin in season 13 of Grey’s Anatomy, and it’s a very emotional scene between Alex and Meredith by the looks of it. I’m so excited for the new season because (as we all know) Justin is going to be absolutely amazing! 😊

The photo is from the season premiere titled “Undo,” and was released by Entertainment Weekly (click on the link for two other photos from the premiere)

 
★ The ABC press release for the season premiere came out today as well. Check it out below.

THE DOCTORS OF GREY SLOAN MEMORIAL HOSPITAL ARE FORCED TO FACE THE CONSEQUENCES OF THEIR ACTIONS, ON ABC’S ‘GREY’S ANATOMY’

“Undo” – When one of Grey Sloan’s own lands in the hospital, Bailey tries to figure out what happened while the rest of the doctors jump in to help. Meredith juggles huge secrets that affect her relationships with Alex and Maggie. While Richard helps Jo with a big decision, April and Catherine clash over the new baby, on the season thirteen premiere of “Grey’s Anatomy,” THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 (8:00-9:00 p.m. EDT), on the ABC Television Network.

“Grey’s Anatomy” stars Ellen Pompeo as Meredith Grey, Justin Chambers as Alex Karev, Chandra Wilson as Miranda Bailey, James Pickens Jr. as Richard Webber, Kevin McKidd as Owen Hunt, Jessica Capshaw as Arizona Robbins, Jesse Williams as Jackson Avery, Sarah Drew as April Kepner, Caterina Scorsone as Amelia Shepherd, Camilla Luddington as Jo Wilson, Jerrika Hinton as Stephanie Edwards, Kelly McCreary as Maggie Pierce, Jason George as Ben Warren, Martin Henderson as Nathan Riggs and Giacomo Gianniotti as Andrew DeLuca.

Guest starring is Debbie Allen as Catherine Avery.

“Grey’s Anatomy” was created and is executive produced by Shonda Rhimes (“Scandal,” “How to Get Away with Murder”). Betsy Beers (“Scandal,” “How to Get Away with Murder”), Mark Gordon (“Saving Private Ryan”), Rob Corn (“Chicago Hope”), William Harper, Stacy McKee, Zoanne Clack and Debbie Allen are executive producers. “Grey’s Anatomy” is produced by ABC Studios.

“Undo” was written by William Harper and directed by Debbie Allen.

★ Justin was photographed running errands in Beverly Hills on Wednesday. Photos have been added to the gallery and the link to them is below.

Beverly Hills – August 31

 
★ Justin’s Instagram account was updated this week with a photo of his father, John. The caption reads “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. (My pops).”

 
 
★ On Thursday, Grey’s Anatomy was filming episode 13.03 at West Los Angeles College which doubles as Grey+Sloan Memorial Hospital. Below are a few photos (click on the thumbnails) and videos where we can see Justin on location. Other people in the photos include co-stars Ellen Pompeo, Caterina Scorsone, Kelly McCreary, Martin Henderson and director Rob Corn.