Ellen Pompeo clarifies her future on Grey's Anatomy as Meredith

However, now speaking with former co-star Katherine Heigl in the Variety series Actors on Actors, Pompeo discussed whether she could leave the character of Meredith behind.

Pompeo responded: "Oh no, I’ve been on the show so long, I’m happy to let that go. We’re past that point. I think it’s okay for Meredith to stop making bad decisions.

"One of my frustrations is the Nick and Meredith of it all. Scott Speedman plays Meredith’s love interest, Nick Marsh - and I love Speedman. Somehow, Meredith can’t figure out how to make a relationship work -still - after all this time."

The pair’s characters had a romantic reconciliation in the finale so perhaps Meredith has had her happy ending.

Pompeo said on Meredith’s exit from Seattle: "I felt so happy to be able to step away and I felt like I accomplished something incredible."

However, the actress did confirm that this was not a complete goodbye to the character nor a "last day on set" for her.

'It’s a little bit of trickery because I’m not completely gone, I am in the finale [of season 19]," teased Pompeo. “Actually, the storyline is very cool. I don’t want to give too much away, but there’s a lot of real research that’s changing very rapidly about Alzheimer’s disease and about what they believe is the cause of Alzheimer’s disease. It’s pretty controversial.

"So Meredith’s character left to go to Boston because her daughter needed to go to a special school and Jesse Williams’ character Jackson lives in Boston and he offered her a job to work at that hospital and do research."

She then added: "I will be making some appearances hopefully next year if I can find some time."

The actress is set to star in a Hulu limited series titled The Orphan - her first new role outside of Grey's in 18 years.

On the subject of Meredith, however, Pompeo concluded: “No, it’s not a complete goodbye and I think we’ve got an interesting story to tell. I certainly think it’s pretty fascinating, the medical piece of it is pretty fascinating."

Fans can expect Pompeo to continue to provide the voiceover on the show and she still remains on board as an executive producer too.

Grey's Anatomy seasons 1 to 19 are available to stream on Disney Plus now – sign up to Disney Plus for £7.99 a month or £79.90 a year now.

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