Thank goodness for Shonda Rhimes. With the news of Scandal's inevitable ending, the cancellation of The Catch, and the upcoming premiere of Still Star-Crossed, it looks like ABC is giving Rhimes plenty of its time slots. But the network isn't stopping there, because it just picked up a brand-new show from Rhimes that's set in the same universe as her longest-running show, Grey's Anatomy.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, ABC ordered a spin-off that centers around Seattle firefighters. The still-unnamed show is the second time the network has attempted to capitalise off of Grey's popularity, since Private Practice took Kate Walsh's character away from the Pacific Northwest and set her in SoCal. It looks like the firefighter drama, which will centre "on firefighters from the captain down the ranks in their personal and professional lives" will stay put in Seattle, however, and will appear as a planted episode in the Grey's Anatomy storyline.
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"No one can interweave the jeopardy firefighters face in the line of duty with the drama in their personal lives quite like Shonda, and Grey’s signature Seattle setting is the perfect backdrop for this exciting spinoff," ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey told THR.
After 13 seasons, Grey's Anatomy is still the top ABC drama, so it makes sense for the network to add to the Grey's universe. After all, that seems to be NBC's M.O. with its lineup of Chicago-centric shows, Chicago P.D., Chicago Fire, Chicago Justice, and Chicago Med, which all exist in the same universe and have occasional character crossover. There's no indication that Meredith Grey and Co. will feature on the new show, but there's always hope — and that fiery explosion from the season finale.
With the announcement of this new addition, it would give Rhimes five shows on ABC, with Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, How To Get Away Murder, new military drama For the People, and Shakespearean drama Still Star-Crossed. That's more than TGIT can contain, not that anyone's complaining.