Grey's Anatomy Casts Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist Alum For Season 21

Michael Thomas Grant joins the cast as Grey Sloan's new openly gay hospital chaplain.

By Nicole Drum

Grey Sloan Memorial is getting a new chaplain. Deadline reports that Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist alum Michael Thomas Grant has been cast as James, hospital's new, openly gay chaplain for the upcoming 21st season of Grey's Anatomy. Per the report, "James joins Grey Sloan as the hospital's only openly gay Episcopal chaplain. He holds a special place in his heart for his younger patients, and his warmth, training and spirituality make him comfortable and confident in any situation. In his personal life, James finds himself at a crossroads where he is open to love and taking great leaps of faith." Grant's character is set to be introduced in the season's second episode.

The addition of Grant as James comes following news about the exit of two other actors playing LGBTQ+ characters, Jake Borelli, who plays Dr. Levi Schmitt, and Midori Francis, who plays Dr. Mika Yasuda. Borelli joined the cast in Season 14. The Season 20 finale saw Levi needing to rethink his plans for the future after his professional aspirations for a pediatrics fellowship ended up being out of reach due to a test score. Francis joined Grey's Anatomy in Season 19 as part of a group of new interns at Grey Sloan.

Grant is best known for his role as Leif Donnelly on NBC's Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. He has also appeared in The Rookie: Feds, and Roadies. Grant has also appeared in numerous stage productions as well.

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Ellen Pompeo Returning For Multiple Episodes in Season 21

As well as the addition of Grant for Season 21 of Grey's Anatomy, fans will get to see more of a familiar face. It was previously reported that Ellen Pompeo will be returning as Meredith Grey for seven episodes. Pompeo, who is also an executive producer on the series, will also continue to serve as the series' narrator. She's portrayed Meredith Grey since the series' premiere in 2005. It is currently unclear if Pompeo's appearances in Season 21 will be consecutive or spread across. the full season. The Season 20 finale saw Meredith resign from the Fox Foundation after being given an ultimatum by Catherine Fox over her Alzheimer research project and, after her resignation, publishing her research publicly. Meredith's actions saw Catherine fire Amelia, Teddy, and Owen in retaliation.

Pompeo stepped back from her role as Meredith Grey during Season 19, which saw her appear for just eight episodes. Season 20 saw her appear in just four with the character having relocated to Boston.

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