The third season of the American television medical drama Grey's Anatomy commenced airing on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) on September 21, 2006, and concluded on May 17, 2007. The season was produced by Touchstone Television channel, in association with Shondaland Production Company and The Mark Gordon Company, the showrunner being Shonda Rhimes. Actors Ellen Pompeo, Sandra Oh, Katherine Heigl, Justin Chambers and T. R. Knight reprised their roles as surgical interns Meredith Grey, Cristina Yang, Izzie Stevens, Alex Karev and George O'Malley, respectively, continuing their expansive storylines as focal points throughout the season. Previous main cast members Chandra Wilson, James Pickens Jr., Kate Walsh, Isaiah Washington, and Patrick Dempsey also returned, while previous guest-stars Sara Ramirez and Eric Dane were promoted to series-regulars, following the extension of their contracts.
The season followed the continuation of the surgical residency of five young interns, as they experience the demands of the competitive field of medicine, which becomes defining in their personal evolution. Although set in fictional Seattle Grace Hospital, located in Seattle, Washington, filming primarily occurred in Los Angeles, California. Whereas the first season mainly focused on the impact the surgical field has on the main characters, and the second season provided a detailed perspective on the physicians' private lives, the third season deals with the tough challenges brought by the last phase of the surgeons' internship, combining the professional motif emphasized in the first season, with the complex personal background used in the second. Through the season, several new storylines are introduced, including the arrival of Dane's character, Dr. Mark Sloan, conceived and introduced as an antagonizing presence.
In a departure from the previous season, the third season aired in a new competitive time-slot of 9:00 pm on Thursdays, competing against the heavily-promoted and highly-rated dramatic television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, which simultaneously aired on the CBS Network. Season 3 of Grey's Anatomy contained 25 episodes, in addition to 2 clip shows that were produced to recap the previous events of the show, before the introduction of major new arcs. "Complications of the Heart" aired on the same night as the season premiere, recapping the last episodes of the second season with insights into future episodes in the third, while "Every Moment Counts" aired before the twentieth episode. The season also aired a 2-part episode arc, which primarily served as a backdoor pilot for a proposed spin-off, Private Practice, focusing on the departure of Walsh's character, Dr. Addison Montgomery.
The series ended its third season with an average of 19.22 million viewers per episode and a 6.8/35 Nielsen rating/share in the 18–49 demographic, ranking #8 in the television season, outperformed by CSI. Television critics expressed a mainly negative outlook on the development of the series throughout the season, with the reviews ranging from mixed-to-negative, as exaggeration and lack of realism have been highlighted as the main issues in the declining quality of the storylines. Despite the negative critical response, the performance of the cast members and the production technique of the crew received outstanding recognition through numerous awards and nominations. Earning major category nominations at the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards and the 65th Golden Globe Awards, the season achieved the series' highest number of recipients, with Heigl being the most-awarded cast member. The series was ranked #6 in USA Today "best of television" list, following the conclusion of the season.
The website Screen Rant ranked the season #5 on their 2023 ranking of the 19 Grey's Anatomy seasons.
Episodes
Each episode of this season is named after a song.
Cast and characters
Main Ellen Pompeo as Dr. Meredith Grey Sandra Oh as Dr. Cristina Yang Katherine Heigl as Dr. Izzie Stevens Justin Chambers as Dr. Alex Karev T. R. Knight as Dr. George O'Malley Chandra Wilson as Dr. Miranda Bailey James Pickens Jr. as Dr. Richard Webber Kate Walsh as Dr. Addison Montgomery Sara Ramirez as Dr. Callie Torres Eric Dane as Dr. Mark Sloan Isaiah Washington as Dr. Preston Burke Patrick Dempsey as Dr. Derek Shepherd
Recurring Chyler Leigh as Dr. Lexie Grey Brooke Smith as Dr. Erica Hahn Kate Burton as Ellis Grey Chris O'Donnell as Finn Dandridge Steven W. Bailey as Joe, the Bartender Kyle Chandler as Dylan Young Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Denny Duquette
Notable guests Elizabeth Reaser as Rebecca "Ava" Pope Loretta Devine as Adele Webber Sarah Utterback as Olivia Harper Héctor Elizondo as Carlos Torres Kali Rocha as Sydney Heron Mitch Pileggi as Lawrence Jennings Roger Rees as Colin Marlowe Jeff Perry as Thatcher Grey Mare Winningham as Susan Grey Debra Monk as Louise O'Malley George Dzundza as Harold O'Malley Tim Griffin as Ronny O'Malley Greg Pitts as Jerry O'Malley Robin Pearson Rose as Patricia Murphy Elisabeth Moss as Nina Rogerson Embeth Davidtz as Nancy Shepherd Monica Keena as Bonnie Crasnoff Nicole Cummins as Paramedic Nicole Anna Maria Horsford as Elizabeth Fallon Abigail Breslin as Megan Clover Mae Whitman as Heather Douglas Tsai Chin as Helen Yang Diahann Carroll as Jane Burke Amy Brenneman as Violet Turner Paul Adelstein as Cooper Freedman Tim Daly as Pete Wilder Chris Lowell as Dell Parker Taye Diggs as Sam Bennett Merrin Dungey as Naomi Bennett
Production
Crew This season is the last to be produced by ABC Studios under title of Touchstone Television, as the company's decision to change its name occurred after the conclusion of the season. Shonda Rhimes returned as the series' showrunner and executive producer. She also continued her position from the first 2 seasons as one of the most prominent members of the writing staff. Betsy Beers, Mark Gordon and Rob Corn also returned as executive producers, along with Mark Wilding, Peter Horton and Krista Vernoff, who have been in this position since the inception of the series. Allan Heinberg, however, joins the production team at the beginning of the third season as a co-executive producer, before his promotion to an executive. Kent Hodder, Nancy Bordson and Steve Mulholland served as executive producers for 4 episodes during the season. Horton left the series at the conclusion of the season, whereas James D. Parriott, who previously served a writer and executive producer for the first 2 seasons, did not continue his work on the show during this season. Joan Rater and Tony Phelan continued to serve as co-executive producers, with Rater being a supervising producer as well. Stacy McKee, who previously served as a producer and writer for the series, was promoted to co-executive producer.
After having written 3 episodes for the first season and 5 for the second, Rhimes returned as a writer for 6 episodes, out of which one was written along with Marti Noxon. Krista Vernoff, Tony Phelan, Stacy McKee and Mark Wilding returned to the series as members of the writing staff, with Vernoff and Phelan writing 3 episodes and McKee and Wilding producing the script of 2 episodes. Gabrielle Stanton and Harry Werksman, Jr. worked together for the writing of 1 episode, after 3 episodes they have written for the series in the past. The season includes the first episode to be written by Debora Cahn, who would become one of the series' main writers, as well as a consulting and supervisor producer. Other writers include Kip Koenig, Carolina Paiz, Eric Buchman, Joan Rater and Chris Van Dusen. Rob Corn returned to the series to direct 3 episodes for the season, after writing 2 episodes in the second season. Greg Yaitanes is credited for directing 2 episodes during the season, the only ones to have been directed by him in the series. Other prominent directors were Jeff Melman, Michael Grossman, Julie Anne Robinson and Adam Arkin, each directing 2 or more episodes during the season. Danny Lux continued his position as the main music composer for the series, while Herbert Davis and Walt Fraser served as the season's cinematography directors. Susan Vaill and Edward Ornelas resumed their positions as editors, seeing David Greenspan, Matthew Ramsey and Avi Fisher being added to the team. Fisher, however, left the series at the conclusion of the season.
Writing and filming
The season was primarily filmed in Los Angeles, California. Fisher Plaza, which is the headquarters building for the media company Fisher Communications and Fisher's ABC-affiliated Komo radio and television stations for Seattle, is used for some exterior shots of Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital, such as air ambulances landing on the Komo Television newscopter's helipad. This puts Seattle Grace conveniently close to the Space Needle, which is directly across the street from Fisher Plaza, the Seattle Monorail, and other local landmarks. However, the hospital used for most other exterior and many interior shots is not in Seattle, are shot at the VA Sepulveda Ambulatory Care Center in North Hills, California. Most scenes are primarily taped in Los Feliz, Los Angeles, at the Prospect Studios, and the set occupies 2 stages, including the hospital pieces, but some outside scenes are shot at the Warren G. Magnuson Park in Seattle. Several props used are genuine medical supplies, including the MRI machine. Before the production of the season officially began, producer Shonda Rhimes stated that she was planning a major development in Ellen Pompeo's character, Meredith Grey.
"There's a spirit there that's just very interesting to me. She was charming and there was something about her so intriguing to watch", stated Rhimes in response to Pompeo's portrayal of her character. Executive producer Betsy Beers stated that the writing staff was going to focus on the balance between her vulnerability and her courage, also dealing with changes in the relationship with her friends. Pompeo noted that the uncertainty of her character's fate is what helped her evolve into a more adaptable actor. Rhimes also disclosed that an episode with Ellis Grey's unexpected lucidity and eventual death was in plans since the beginning of the series. Rhimes described how Pompeo got through the challenge of sending Meredith in the afterlife: "It was an exciting place to take her. Exciting to watch her find her way back." In response to Izzie's arc, Shonda Rhimes discussed the impact Denny Duquette's death will have on her, noting that Izzie is forced to abandon her idealism, which in turn leads to her letting go of medicine. In the aftermath of Denny's death, Katherine Heigl came to believe that Izzie was not cut out to be a doctor. Executive producer Betsy Beers explained, however, that Denny's death served to make Izzie more mature, and Heigl affirmed that "At the beginning of the third season, they were trying to show how lost Izzie was. She lost her optimism. She realizes now that life is difficult, but she still tries very hard to see the best in people."