Grey’s Anatomy Star James Pickens Jr. On Upcoming Heartrending Twist

Thanks to Kevin McKidd and Camilla Luddington, Grey’s Anatomy fans are already aware that the season 19 finale will break our hearts. However, that reason now seems to be coming clear after James Pickens Jr., who plays Richard Webber, spoke at PaleyFest.

Grey’s Anatomy: Dr. Richard Webber tested like never before

James Pickens Jr. recently opened up about the season 19 finale of Grey’s Anatomy. Fans already know that his character’s wife, Catherine’s (Debbie Allen) cancer progresses. This could likely lead to an event that will test Dr. Richard Webber like never before. It is clearly possible that her adoring husband may lose Catherine, which will be a tragic moment indeed.

Speaking to TVLine at the Grey’s Anatomy PaleyFest panel, James Pickens Jr. opened up about the future on the medical drama. He says that fans can expect “something that’s really going to test Richard like maybe nothing before has up to this point.” He added:

His focus is going to be ushering her on and cheerleading her. He’ll try to not dwell on [the potential of her dying] as much as possible, if that can be done.

Moreover, he added that he thinks Richard wants to just make Catherine’s landing, wherever that is, “as comfortable as possible.”

Two-part May 18 finale

This certainly sounds like a challenging moment for Pickens and Allen who, incidentally, also directs the second hour of the two-part May 18 finale. Pickens continued, saying that obviously, they both have longtime spouses, saying “you get in the mindset of ‘Oh my God, what if this were really my wife or husband or something?’” Pickens asked how you could deal with that, but added that “it’s kind of cathartic in that way.”

Recently, Ellen Pompeo left her role as Dr. Meredith Grey. She was quickly followed by Kelly McCreary (Dr. Maggie Pierce) following in her wake. Can fans take another shocking loss, with Catherine literally leaving the hospital?

Readers, do you think that Catherine will finally succumb to her deadly cancer, leaving another gaping hole in the popular cast of Grey’s Anatomy? Let us know your thoughts by dropping a comment below.

Meanwhile, fans will have to wait until Thursday, May 18 for the finale episode of Grey’s Anatomy season 19. In the meanwhile, we can all enjoy the episodes each Thursday at 9 pm on ABC.