Ellen Pompeo: Grey’s Anatomy Is Doing Just Fine Without Patrick Dempsey

Ellen Pompeo Photo by Bob D’Amico / ABC

Fans of Grey’s Anatomy were shocked when Patrick Dempsey’s character Dr. Derek Shepherd was (spoiler alert!) killed off the show last season.

While the death of McDreamy was a hard pill to swallow, Ellen Pompeo recently revealed on the Ellen DeGeneres Show that the series is doing just fine without him.

“Everybody thought because Patrick was leaving that it wouldn’t do well, but it’s doing very well,” DeGeneres told Pompeo.

“It’s amazing how much you get done without a penis,” the Everett native jokingly replied. “We miss him dearly, but yeah, the show is doing very well.”

After having some fun at her fellow New England native’s expense, Pompeo also told the day time host that Grey’s Anatomy will be coming back for another season following this year’s finale on May 19.

Despite the loss of McDreamy, the actress believes that rotating people in and out of the cast is ultimately a good thing for the show.

“I think the change is part of the reason why the show goes on so long,” Pompeo said. “I think people tune in to see, ‘What is the show look like now? What is Meredith going to do without Derek?’ I think they get so upset about the change, but change is precisely what everyone always needs to sort of get to the next place.”

She added, “I’m more engaged this season than I have been in a long time, because for the fans, I want to make sure the quality stays good.”

Check out more from Pompeo’s chat on Ellen below.