Is a major change afoot at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital?
Ahead of Grey’s Anatomy’s season 22 premiere in October, social media users speculated that an explosion at the medical drama’s fictional setting during the season 21 finale could spell bad news for a fan-favorite character.
In a promo for the new season released Sept. 23, several possible “fatalities” are teased, with cast members expressing concern for Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) and Dr. Atticus “Link” Lincoln (Chris Carmack).
Some viewers dug deeper, taking note of which actors are slated to come back this fall. Chandra and fellow Grey’s OGs Ellen Pompeo and James Pickens Jr.—along with Kevin McKidd, Kim Raver, Caterina Scorsone and Camilla Luddington—are all contracted to reprise their roles, according to TVLine, but the outlet highlighted Chris’ omission from the list—as did many fans.
“If Atticus Lincoln dies, so help me god,” one user said in a post on X, while another wrote, “Don’t piss me off yall….i need Atticus Lincoln to be okay.”
While audiences await the long-running series’ premiere to see who survived the blast, Chris—who joined the show as a recurring character during season 15 before being elevated to the main cast the following year—has offered mixed signals regarding his character’s fate.
“I hope we get to next season, right?” he told Us Weekly in May, adding, “I’m not gonna give anything away.”
Disney/Nino MuñozThe following month, he continued to play coy—though he pointed out that he hadn’t been formally asked back to work.
“I don’t know what I can share because I don’t know anything yet,” he said in an interview with Woman’s World at the time. “Wait—now that I think about it, I haven’t gotten the call yet saying, ‘See ya in July.’”
Find out what happens to Link—and the rest of the doctors—when Grey’s Anatomy returns Oct. 9 on ABC. Until then, keep reading to see when more TV favorites are coming back…
