It's kind of weird when the events of the real world dictate what happens in our favourite fictional ones, but that's exactly how it went down for
Grey's Anatomy. The April 9 episode wasn't meant to be the season finale (we were supposed to get another month at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital) but after the set was shut down over COVID-19 concerns, episode 21 was made to serve as a makeshift ending (for now). Star Giacomo Gianniotti, who plays Dr. Andrew DeLuca on the show, revealed to
etalk how it all went down."In the beginning, it started with us getting an email we were going to shut down production for two weeks and then reassess the situation," the Canadian-Italian actor explained. "We had just finished shooting the 22nd episode... And after those two weeks we got another email saying, 'Unfortunately, what we didn't want to happen has happened and we've had to officially shut down.'"Don't be alarmed,
Grey's fans, you'll still get to see what the writers had in store for your favourite characters—it will just happen at the beginning of season 17 instead. Giacomo says that while this episode wasn't the finale they intended, it still totally stands up in its own right."We were ramping up to a different kind of finale—which we'll just have to wait for next season," he said. "I think luckily—very, very luckily—this episode is incredible and jam-packed with climaxes to the stories we've been telling. So I think it's going to be a very satisfying finale, even though it wasn't originally planned as one."[video_embed id='1936265']RELATED: TV doctors & nurses come together to thank real medical professionals[/video_embed]Well, it's nice to see that something good has finally come from
Grey's dedication to non-stop high-stakes drama and spontaneous cliff-hangers.Shorter-stakes is Giacomo's new way to pass the time in self-isolation. The actor talked about how he started daily poetry reads—appropriately titled "Poetry in the PM"—on Instagram featuring his famous friends from around the world. Every day at 2 p.m. PST, you can catch Giacomo and his guests reading a variety of poetry in different languages."I just love poetry and literature and I just thought it was a nice way to kind of connect us all in these times where we're so divided, physically, at least," he said. "The poetry was half wanting to share something that could connect us and half just absolute boredom—just wanting something to stimulate myself, something to hold myself accountable."He added that while it's been nice to spend extra time with wife, Nichole Gustafson, he feels for the family he has back in Italy, where the virus hit hard in early March."Most of my family lives in Italy, just outside of Rome where I was married last year," he said. "It's definitely been tough—I've been very, very lucky that my family has not been affected by this. They're affected in the sense that their lives are dramatically changed, but they haven't contracted the virus thankfully... I talk to them almost every day and check in with them."Safe to say, Giacomo is looking forward to reuniting with faraway kin, as many are right now. Also on his mind? His basketball family. Giacomo is a well-documented Raptors fan who is mourning the rest of the season."I have my Raptors slides," he said. "Because I'm that sad and a nerd. I'll just be wearing my Raptors jersey at home—my Raptors hat, my Raptors slides. Just to have a little bit of pride and excitement and pretend like basketball is still on. I miss it terribly."
"I was in Toronto when we won the Championship so it will be sad not to be there for when the one year [anniversary] happens because it was so incredibly special," he said. "If you were there when it happened and you were from Toronto—I've never seen the city like that ever."Watch the season finale of
Grey's Anatomy on CTV.ca and the CTV app April 9 at 9pET.[video_embed id='1936894']BEFORE YOU GO: Kelly Ripa gets tearful over the stress of physical distancing[/video_embed]
