When Grey's Anatomy Is Returning After Thanksgiving, And Why Fans Think The Show Already Spoiled The Cliffhanger

NIko Terho as Lucas Adams and Camilla Luddington as Jo Wilson cower during an armed robbery during Grey's Anatomy Season 21 midseason finale "Drop It Like It's Hot" on November 21, 2024.
(Image credit: Tina Thorpe/ABC/Disney)

Thursdays are typically the days that many TV lovers have designated as “the day we watch Grey’s Anatomy." Last week, though, many of us were likely too distracted by Thanksgiving feasts, a rainy Macy’s parade and Tom Brady pretending to eat turducken while working the holiday football games to miss our favorite Seattle surgeons too much. Unfortunately now that Thanksgiving has passed, we can’t just return to our regular-scheduled programming, as Grey’s Anatomy is on hiatus until the 2025 TV schedule. So when exactly will Season 21 resume, and why are fans saying the cliffhanger has already been spoiled?

Grey’s Anatomy will not return to the 2024 TV schedule, so you can imagine the writers left us with some juicy plot to ponder on its midseason finale. “Drop It Like It’s Hot” found Lucas Adams (Niko Terho) and a pregnant Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) involved in a hostage situation while trying to get ice from a convenience store. At the end of the episode, Lucas and the robber struggle over the gun and (of course) it discharges. We have to wait until March 6, 2025, to find out who, if anyone, caught that bullet, but fans think the promo already spoiled one character’s fate.

Check out the preview for Grey’s Anatomy’s next episode below, but anyone who doesn’t want any spoilers might want to stop reading here.

Grey's Anatomy 21x09 Promo (HD) - YouTube Grey's Anatomy 21x09 Promo (HD) - YouTube
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We see Jo being wheeled in on a gurney, but it’s unknown if she was shot or if this is related to the bleeding she started to encounter shortly before the struggle over the gun. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) also appears to tell Jo’s partner Link (Chris Carmack), “Pull yourself together so she can fall apart.”

Grey’s Anatomy is definitely leading us to believe something has happened with the JoLink babies, but either way, it appears that Lucas will not suffer the same fate as his grandfather — Amelia and Derek Shepherd’s father — who died in an armed robbery. An eagle-eyed fan on Reddit noted a certain someone’s appearance in the top right corner of the frame:

Camilla Luddington as Jo Wilson and Chandra Wilson as Miranda Bailey are shown in the preview for Grey's Anatomy Season 21 episode 9.

(Image credit: ABC)

Not that I’d consider myself the leading expert on Niko Terho’s mouth, but that does look to me like Lucas’ face. Also, since he seems to be running with the stretcher, the blood on his scrubs is likely either Jo’s or the robber’s. We also see Teddy with an unknown patient later in the preview, but that can’t be Lucas, since Simone and Jules are in the operating room with her. The interns wouldn’t be allowed in their friend's surgery, especially Simone since she’s dating Lucas.

Earlier in Season 21 Lucas was involved in a scary helicopter situation with Levi Schmitt, when a storm hit and they had to make an emergency landing. I said then that there was no way Grey’s Anatomy would kill off McDreamy’s nephew — especially at a time when it’s losing several other cast members — and this preview is all the proof I need that Lucas is OK.

We have a few months to wait, though, before we find out what’s going on with Jo, and what drama awaits Teddy and Owen, with more Sophia Bush-related issues introduced in the midseason finale. (Did anybody else’s eyes roll out of their head at Owen’s reaction to Cass touching Teddy’s shoulder?)

While we wait painstakingly for March 6, 2025, you can rewatch the first eight episodes of Season 21 with a Hulu subscription, with the first 20 Grey’s Anatomy seasons available to stream on Hulu as well as with a Netflix subscription.

Heidi Venable
Content Producer

Heidi Venable is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend, a mom of two and a hard-core '90s kid. She started freelancing for CinemaBlend in 2020 and officially came on board in 2021. Her job entails writing news stories and TV reactions from some of her favorite prime-time shows like Grey's Anatomy and The Bachelor. She graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a degree in Journalism and worked in the newspaper industry for almost two decades in multiple roles including Sports Editor, Page Designer and Online Editor. Unprovoked, will quote Friends in any situation. Thrives on New Orleans Saints football, The West Wing and taco trucks.