Station 19: Racist abuse creates scandal behind the scenes

In April 2021, the Grey’s Anatomy spin-off, Station 19, impressed by offering a powerful episode that reflected the murder of George Floyd, which had occurred a few months earlier. But more than a year later, the series, known for its ability to tackle difficult subjects, is at the center of an unprecedented scandal.

According to the information DeadlineA racial slur in one of the Season 6 scripts shocked the show’s writing team. According to sources, the draft of the next season’s episode, which will air on ABC in the fall, included several racial slurs uttered by a racist character.

Also, according to Deadline, the script was given to a white screenwriter, who used a particularly derogatory term for people of Mexican origin. This draft script would have created shock and disbelief among the other screenwriters at the meeting writer’s roomWhich caused tension that forced the production to stop the session.

In the face of this incident, Krista Vernoff, the showrunner of Grey’s Anatomy and Station 19, sent an email to her team last Monday in which she talks about “Recent damage and system problems” which will be discussed at the meeting held on Tuesday, August 2.

“We will not have a creative meeting or send you a mass mailing before this date.“, – writes Krista Vernoff in her email.We will not return to business as usual until the recent damage and systemic issues are resolved and healing begins.“

Also according to Deadline’s sources, the meeting went well on Tuesday and communication between the writers has resumed since then. Meetings writer’s room However, it has yet to start before new protective measures are put in place. Also, according to sources, there have been similar issues in the past, but this incident was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Shondaland, the Shonda Rhimes producer behind Grey’s Anatomy and Station 19, moved quickly after the incident, as the group is known for breaking many barriers to the representation of ethnic minorities over the past two decades.

In a statement to Deadline, the company announced that “Reimagining the organization“within writer’s room to create “A more respectful and inclusive workplace“. While the details of that reorganization are still unclear, Keely Donovan, who assists Krista Vernow at Station 19, may be moving to another Shondaland series to replace a person of color at the helm of the writing team. .

The fate of the story that sparked the controversy is also up in the air. The offending part will obviously not be used and the script may be scrapped entirely, but no decision has been made yet.

Season 6 of Station 19 began filming on July 28, airing on ABC from October 6. The series is offered in France on TF1.