Station 19 fans were dealt quite a blow last week when it was announced that Season 7 of the Grey’s Anatomy spinoff would be its last. The show’s cancellation comes after we already endured a fall without the firefighters, as the series was postponed until 2024 amid the writers’ and actors’ strikes. As tough as that’s been for viewers to accept, the news didn’t seem to put a damper on the spirits of the cast, who looked pretty happy to be reunited with their fire station family on set.
Jason George — whose character Ben Warren initiated the spinoff when he decided to leave the medical field of Grey’s Anatomy behind in favor of fighting fires — posted an Instagram video of himself and a few of his castmates back in uniform on the set of Station 19:
There are few things related to this show that make me happier than seeing Jaina Lee Ortiz and Barrett Doss dancing. Station 19’s cancellation seemed to be the furthest thing from their minds as they celebrated being able to get back into character as Andy Herrera and Vic Hughes again. Jason George asked, “Did you miss us?” (we did), as Carlos Miranda — aka Theo Ruiz — made goofy faces at the camera.
It’s great to see them having so much fun together on “Day 1,” even with this being the beginning of the end. Fans haven’t been taking the news as easily, and a change.org petition to “Save Station 19” has now garnered more than 27,000 signatures. It’s hard for many to understand why ABC would cancel such a successful series, which is known for its POC and LGBTQ+ representation, as well as the newsworthy issues its plots tackle.
Shonda Rhimes spoke out after the news broke, sending a “heartfelt salute to the exceptional cast,” and to the fans “for the magic, the moments, and the memories.” It seems like Jaina Lee Ortiz, Jason George and the rest are intent on giving us more magic and memories for these last 10 episodes, and their energy gives me hope for what’s to come.
Grey’s Anatomy’s cast also seemed to be excited to be back at work, with several of the actors posting photos from their first table read for Season 20. Series orders for both of the Seattle dramas were reduced to 10 episodes for their respective seasons, which will both premiere on Thursday, March 14.
Shorter seasons aren’t the only change for Station 19, either, as it is also changing timeslots. With 9-1-1 moving to ABC for its seventh season, it will take over the 8 p.m. ET Thursday space on the schedule. Grey’s Anatomy will maintain its 9 p.m. start, with the firefighter spinoff following at 10 p.m.
While it’s a bummer that Season 7 will be the final chapter in Station 19’s story, at least the writers knew that going in, as many series do not get that kind of notice ahead of a cancellation. We can also take comfort in the fact that the cast is still happy to be there and will theoretically give us the best final episodes we can hope for. If you want to catch up on any previous seasons of Station 19 before March 14, all episodes are available to stream with a Hulu subscription.