The dramatic finale of Grey’s Anatomy season 21 officially aired on May 15, leaving behind a series of big questions about the fate of the doctors at Grey Sloan Memorial. The shocking ending left fans “on the edge of their seats”, competing to predict who survived the horrific explosion.
Although we have to wait until season 22 – in ABC’s primetime slot for the 2025–2026 school year – to get the answer, ending with a “cliffhanger” is not uncommon for this long-running medical series.
In the finale, viewers witnessed Jo (Camilla Luddington) and Link (Chris Carmack) enjoying their wedding bliss, while the tumultuous marriage between Owen and Teddy seemed to have come to an end. However, the emotional focus belonged to Amelia (Caterina Scorsone), when she performed a dangerous pediatric brain surgery that seemed to be successful.
The drama escalates when the patient takes a turn for the worse, sending the mother – played by Yellowstone star Piper Perabo – into a panic. She steals an acetylene tank from her husband’s truck, holding Amelia and interns Simone (Alexis Floyd) and Lucas (Niko Tehro) captive in the operating room, forcing them to save their daughter at all costs.
Although the team successfully saves the patient and restrains the mother, they soon realize that gas has been leaking the entire time. Amelia immediately sends Lucas to warn the other doctors, while Link begins a laparoscopic surgery, unaware of the danger lurking. Seconds later, Link’s surgical equipment explodes. Meredith (Ellen Pompeo), from the hospital parking lot, watches in horror as the explosion unfolds before the screen goes black.
Who survived the explosion remains a mystery. Key characters such as Bailey (Chandra Wilson), Amelia, Link and Jo – who is eight months pregnant with twins – remain missing.
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Cast Shares Their Favorite ‘Cliffhangers’
After the thrilling finale, the Grey’s Anatomy cast took to TikTok to share their favorite endings from the show’s 20-year run.
Chris Carmack (Link) picked the season 1 finale — where Meredith finds out Derek (Patrick Dempsey) is married — as his favorite scene. “Season 1. Derek gets married. Addison shows up. Total shock,” he summed up.
Both Niko Tehro (Lucas) and Adelaide Kane (Jules) picked the season 2 finale, in which a desperate Izzie (Katherine Heigl) cuts the LVAD wire to help her husband, Denny (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), receive a heart. While the act has been talked about a lot, it’s Denny’s death that haunts them the most.
Alexis Floyd (Simone) mentioned the heartbreaking ending of season 3, when Christina (Sandra Oh) did not make it down the aisle to marry Burke (Isaiah Washington). “It was a shock,” Floyd said.
Kevin McKidd (Owen Hunt) picked season 8—when the plane carrying Meredith, Derek, Christina, Mark, Lexie and Arizona crashed in the middle of the woods—as the most memorable ending. Meanwhile, Chandra Wilson (Bailey) and Jason George (Ben Warren) couldn’t forget the season 6 finale, where the shooter haunted the hospital.
