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‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Season 13 Will Tackle Domestic Violence, But Dr. Christina Yang Won’t Be There [Video]

By Patricia Ramirez
Published on: 02:11 PST, Sep 12, 2016

The much-anticipated premiere of Grey’s Anatomy Season 13 is just around the corner. The 13th season of the ABC medical drama kicks off on September 22 at 8 p.m. EST on the network, and since the dramatic Grey’s Anatomy Season 12 finale, fans of the show have been trying to figure out what might happen next. Not unlike summer’s past, when Grey’s Anatomy fans were forced into their annual Grey’s dry spell, rumors and speculations about next season have run rampant. As the Grey’s Anatomy Season 13 premiere date looms, the rumored story lines are getting more specific.

For the last few weeks, the talk surrounding Grey’s Anatomy Season 13 has centered around the possible return of the beloved and irreplaceable Dr. Christina Yang (Sandra Oh). Dr. Yang exited Grey’s Anatomy at the end of Season 10, and she didn’t even come back to the show to comfort her bestie and show namesake Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) when the love of Meredith’s life, Dr. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), died in an unexpected car crash in Season 11. However, following Dr. Yang’s departure from Grey’s Anatomy, Sandra Oh had spoken of a possible return to the series that made her a household name when Grey’s Anatomy wrapped up for good.

That little tidbit got tongues wagging that Grey’s Anatomy Season 13 might be the long-running show’s final season, especially since creator Shonda Rhimes has promised to devote the season to the show’s remaining original cast: Dr. Meredith Grey, Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson), Dr. Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.), and Dr. Alex Karev (Justin Chambers).

However, after weeks of “will she or won’t she” talk, Sandra Oh has decided to set the record straight regarding her character’s return to Grey’s Anatomyduring Season 13. As List reports, Dr. Yang isn’t coming back to the show. At least, not anytime soon, according to the woman who played her flawlessly for ten seasons.

“I’ve gotta tell you those rumors, I don’t know who starts them but it really is tough. No, I have no plans to return to ‘Grey’s anytime soon.”

The rumors surrounding a possible Christina Yang return during Season 13 likely got so much traction because Sandra Oh is one of the few ex-Grey’s Anatomy cast members who wasn’t killed off as a way to facilitate her exit from the series. Part of the reason that Grey’s Anatomy is such a tear-jerking roller coaster is because fans never know who’s going to live or die from one episode to the next. When Dr. Yang’s character was written out of Grey’s at the end of Season 10, she moved to Zurich to run a hospital. This means that even though we’re not going to be seeing the return of Dr. Christina Yang in Season 13, Sandra Oh could still come back to the series at some point in the future of Grey’s Anatomy.

During an interview, Sandra Oh spoke about the decision to walk away from her Grey’s Anatomy gig.

“And then there was another section for the next few years, and now I feel like the past two years have been a section of time where it was like the end of work and the decision to leave. It’s like leaving a relationship in a really healthy way. It’s like, ‘OK, I’m not growing in this relationship anymore. I love you, I know you love me, and I have to move on.'”

While Grey’s Anatomy fans might be a little bummed out to learn that Dr. Yang won’t be coming back for Season 13 (at least according to Sandra Oh; remember that this is a series that’s known for throwing curve balls), the Season 12 finale left a lot of strings dangling, which means that fans have a lot of that patented Grey’s Anatomy drama to look forward to, no matter what.

The Grey’s Anatomy Season 12 finale ended with the wedding of Christina Yang’s ex-husband, Dr. Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) and Dr. Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone). Caterina Scorsone is pregnant in real life, so there was some speculation that the Grey’s Anatomy couple might be expecting a baby soon, but rumor has it their story arc isn’t going in that direction. A lot of fans thought the return of Dr. Yang could spell “love triangle,” but now that’s been debunked, too. That means that the Hunt/Shepherd love affair could go in pretty much any direction during Grey’s Anatomy Season 13.

The Grey’s Anatomy Season 12 finale also saw Dr. Alex Karev beating Dr. DeLuca (Giacomo Gianniotti) senseless. The reason for Dr. Karev’s violent outburst boiled down to a miscommunication, reports Entertainment Weekly, and Alex’s choice to react with his fists could have life-changing consequences in Grey’s AnatomySeason 13. There have even been rumors that Dr. DeLuca could die as a result of the beat-down Alex handed down. If so, it could spell the end of Dr. Karev’s career and even his freedom.

The reason for the miscommunication: Dr. DeLuca was (platonically) tucking Dr. Karev’s lady love, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington), into bed after she drunkenly spilled a huge secret. Alex has been after Jo to marry him for much of Grey’s Anatomy Season 12, but she’s repeatedly (and without explanation) turned him down. At the end of the season finale, Jo admitted to Dr. DeLuca that she couldn’t marry Alex because she’s already married, the victim of intense domestic violence and that Jo Wilson isn’t even her real name. She’s living in hiding.

According to numerous reports, Grey’s Anatomy Season 13 is going to take the opportunity to address the serious issue of domestic violence, especially violence against women, as Jo and Alex see their relationship evolve (or end, you never know, it’s Grey’s).

Fans waiting for Season 13 of Grey’s Anatomy can also expect to see whether or not Dr. April Kepner (Sarah Drew) and Dr. Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) can pull their relationship back together after the dramatic birth of their daughter at the end of Season 12.

Not to mention how Meredith handles her post-McDreamy relationship with Dr. Nathan Riggs (Martin Henderson) now that she knows that her newly-discovered half-sister Maggie Pierce (Kelly McCreary) has the hots for him, too.

What do you think is coming for the cast of Grey’s Anatomy during Season 13?

[Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP Images]

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