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Looks like there’s some Grey’s Anatomy-level drama happening off-screen between two of its biggest stars—Ellen Pompeo and Patrick Dempsey. Yep, “Meredith Grey” and “McDreamy” aren’t exactly seeing eye to eye these days, and it all started with a podcast and a little talk about paychecks.
Ellen Pompeo recently appeared on the Call Her Daddy podcast and got real about her experience with pay inequality on the long-running medical drama. She mentioned how Patrick Dempsey—her former on-screen love interest—was earning more than she was back in the day, even though her character ended up becoming the face of the show. At the time, Dempsey was reportedly pulling in around $350,000 per episode, while Pompeo was getting about $200,000.
Now, Ellen did acknowledge that Dempsey was more established when the show began, so his higher salary made sense at first. But as the show gained popularity and she became the centerpiece, she couldn’t help but feel underpaid.
But what really set things off was when Pompeo made a pointed remark about Dempsey’s rocky road to success, saying, “Only a man can have 13 failed pilots and his quote still goes up.” Ouch.
Patrick Dempsey didn’t take that comment lightly. According to insider sources quoted by Radar Online and New Idea, he was completely blindsided by Ellen’s jab. One source said, “In acting circles, calling out someone’s past flops publicly is just not done. It felt like a low blow, and Patrick’s hurt and confused about why she’d bring that up now.”
From Dempsey’s camp, there’s talk that Ellen’s words came from a place of old resentment. One person familiar with Dempsey’s side said, “He’s moved on and found success elsewhere, and he’s shocked she hasn’t let go of the past.”
But Ellen’s friends say she’s well within her rights to speak her truth. According to someone close to her, “She and Patrick had no relationship after he left the show, and it was painful. Their on-screen chemistry helped him just as much as it helped her. She’s just asking for the respect she deserves.”
Since 2017, Pompeo’s become one of TV’s top-paid actresses, reportedly earning $20 million a year—so things have certainly changed. But clearly, the old wounds from the early days of Grey’s Anatomy haven’t completely healed.