‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Spinoff About Firefighters Gets ABC Series Order

Four years after the end of Private Practice, Shonda Rhimes’ hit medical drama Grey’s Anatomy is getting another spinoff, which will revolve around Seattle firefighters.

The project, which is being unveiled at ABC’s upfront presentation today, has received a straight-to-series order for midseason 2018.

Set in a Seattle firehouse, the spinoff, from Rhimes’ Shondaland, will be written by Grey’s executive producer/co-showrunner Stacy McKee. It follows a group of heroic firefighters. From the captain to the newest recruit, the show revolves around these brave men and women as they risk their lives and their hearts both in the line of duty and off the clock.

The lead character is expected to be introduced in an episode of Grey‘s next fall before the series launches in midseason. I hear it’s possible for characters from Grey‘s to cross over to the next series.

“No one can interweave the jeopardy firefighters face in the line of duty with the drama in their personal lives quite like Shonda, and Grey’s signature Seattle setting is the perfect backdrop for this exciting spinoff,” said ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey.

McKee will executive produce with Shondaland’s Rhimes and Betsy Beers for ABC Studios where Shondaland is based.

The method of expansion of the Grey’s franchise is similar to Dick Wolf’s Chicago dramas at NBC, which follow firefighters, paramedics, cops, doctors and DAs in the same city, allowing for crossovers.

Thirteen seasons in, Grey’s Anatomy continues to defy gravity, ranking as ABC’s highest-rated series with an average of a 3.3 adults 18-49 rating in Live+7. Its first spinoff, starring Grey’s Kate Walsh and following her character Dr. Addison Montgomery as she leaves Seattle Grace Hospital to join a private practice in Los Angeles, was hatched 10 years ago. Private Practice was introduced in a highly-rated May 2007 episode of Grey’s Anatomy, which served as a two-hour backdoor pilot. The project was quickly picked up to series, which launched in fall 2007 and aired for six seasons.

Shondaland

The new Grey’s spinoff gives Rhimes’ Shondaland six series on ABC. It joins mothership Grey’s Anatomy, set to return for a 14th season next fall; Scandal, coming back for a seventh and final season, How To Get Away with Murder, recently renewed for a fourth season, the upcoming Romeo & Juliet sequel Still Star-Crossed, which premieres May 29, and new legal drama For the People which, like the Grey’s Anatomy spinoff, will debut next midseason.

McKee, who is under an overall deal at ABC Studios, is a Grey’s Anatomy veteran – she is one of only two writers to have worked on Grey’s since the beginning. She has served as executive producer/co-showrunner on Grey’s alongside Bill Harper, with the duo working under creator/executive producer Rhimes. McKee has written over 30 episodes, including a number of season premieres and finales.