Shonda Rhimes Reveals Which 'Grey's Anatomy' Moment Left Her Daughter 'Very Upset' (Exclusive)
Shonda Rhimes' daughter may have VIP access to one of the top creative minds behind Grey's Anatomy, but that doesn't make the sting of the show's most wild (or infuriating) moments any less intense.
Talking with ET on Monday night from the season 3 premiere of Bridgerton -- which she serves as executive producer on -- Rhimes, 54, updated fans on her daughter's first time bingeing the Ellen Pompeo-led series and which scene she recently had a visceral reaction to.
"She was very upset to discover Cristina Yang was pregnant," Rhimes -- the creator and executive producer of the long-running medical drama -- shared. "Very upset, it was very sweet, yes."
Rhimes is referencing the storyline from season 1 in which intern Cristina Yang -- played by Golden Globe winner Sandra Oh -- discovers she is pregnant after a sexual encounter with Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington). Following a scary collapse in the OR from a burst fallopian tube, Cristina lost the pregnancy due to the ectopic placement of the fertilized egg.
Shonda Rhimes at the Bridgerton season 3 premiere on May 13.
It's just the kind of storyline that has made Rhimes realize how consequential some of the early episodes and seasons of Grey's Anatomy are. As they approach the end of their 20th season -- and the renewal at ABC for season 21 -- the Scandal showrunner first revealed her daughter's choice of a new TV series on Instagram in March, which left fans scratching their heads at how the time has passed so quickly. Rhimes is the mother of daughters Harper, 21, Emerson, 11, and Beckett, 10.
"My not so tiny human started watching @greysabc for the first time yesterday. My brain is breaking. 🤯 I am dead. DEAD. But so glad she's getting to see the women her mom created. #GreysAnatomy," Rhimes wrote in an Instagram post at the time.
Along with the caption, Rhimes posted a picture of her daughter sitting at the kitchen counter with a bowl of pasta as she watches the series. The television producer didn't share exactly which episode her daughter was on -- or if she's been able to ask any of the questions longtime viewers of the show have had for years.
"I started watching the show again [with her] and sort of realized it's pretty serious," she told ET on Monday of her own rewatch, adding that she's excited for even more shocking moments and episodes to come -- namely the "Super Bowl episode" from season 2. That climactic two-parter features Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) dramatically giving birth and Meredith Grey (Pompeo) sticking her hand inside a patient's chest cavity where a detonation device is ticking.
While she shared that their joint venture of watching Grey's Anatomy together has been a bonding experience, the Princess Diaries 2: A Royal Engagement writer says that she might be drawing the line at Grey's and certainly keeping at least one of her popular shows off limits until her daughter gets a little older.
"I'm not ready for her to start watching Bridgerton," Rhimes joked. "She's too young."
She's got a few years left until she can start watching the hit Netflix period drama -- which is finally back for season 3 after a two-year hiatus. In opposition to the order of the books, the upcoming season focuses on Penelope Featherington (Nicola Coughlan) and Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton), who have been in the friend zone for seasons 1 and 2.
Rhimes promises that fans -- especially the "Polin" lovers -- will be satisfied by the exciting climax to the love story between the wallflower Featherington sister and the world traveler Bridgerton.
"It's a slow burn but it's a really good slow burn," she said of season 3. "You feel it -- it's very good... we wanna build that anticipation and make you enjoy it."
Watch the trailer for Bridgerton season 3 in the player below:
As for which Bridgerton sibling will find love next after Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor) and Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) were at the center of seasons 1 and 2, the producer says she and the other creatives are still weighing their options and are considering going out of order if it makes the story better.
"I would say it depends on the book," she said. "We've been looking to the books, you know, I love them all so it just really depends on the book and when we start to talk about it as making the world larger than just literary."
Bridgerton season 3, part 1 premieres on Netflix on May 16. Part 2 hits the streaming platform on June 13.
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