Ellen Pompeo isn’t ready for her younger daughter to see “Grey’s Anatomy” just yet.
Pompeo appeared on a recent episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” to talk about her upcoming Hulu series “Good American Family.” During her appearance, she and host Jimmy Kimmel reflected on the 20th anniversary of the premiere of “Grey’s Anatomy.”
The ABC medical drama debuted in March 2005 and returned for Season 21 in September 2024. Over the course of the last two decades and with the popularity of streaming services, the show has picked up an entirely new fanbase of young viewers who are watching the series for the first time.
When Kimmel asked Pompeo if any of her children were part of that group, she shared, “My 15-year-old has seen it and now my 10-year-old wants to see it, which, she’s not ready, but a lot of kids in her class have seen it.”
“No judgment on other parents, but I don’t want my daughter to see me in my underwear on television just yet, but all her classmates have, so!” she said. “That makes for great conversation at pickup.”
After Kimmel asked Pompeo if watching back old episodes of “Grey’s Anatomy” felt like “watching home movies,” the actor had the perfect answer: “No because I don’t remember half of it. I’m just like, ‘When did that happen?’”
Pompeo has starred on “Grey’s Anatomy” since 2005 and appeared in over 400 episodes as the show’s titular character, Meredith Grey. However, the actor left the series in February 2023 after 19 seasons, with her character announcing in the midseason finale that she’d be relocating to Boston with her family.
Per Deadline, Pompeo was set to make an appearance in the Season 19 finale and stayed on to provide voiceovers for the remainder of the season as well as an executive producer for the show. She also appeared during Season 20 of the show, after she was featured in the teaser video for the season.
Outside of her work as an actor, Pompeo is a mom to three children, whom she shares with her husband, music producer Chris Ivery.
She and Ivery, who have been married since 2007, share daughters Stella and Sienna, and son Eli.
She tends to keep her personal life private, including her children, but made a rare appearance with Sienna in February 2023 during New York Fashion Week.