The 11 Saddest ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Deaths: Surgeons, Patients & Doc, Too
Not all Grey’s Anatomy deaths hit us right in the feels. The deaths of Dr. Reed Adamson (Nora Zehetner) and Dr. Heather Brooks (Tina Majorino) were more shocking than sad, for instance.
But the character demises below were gut punches that get the waterworks flowing on every rewatch. Some of these demises ended seasons, many sunk ships, and they all took a toll in tissues. Here are our selections for the saddest Grey’s Anatomy deaths (so far, at least).
11. Doc
As if the drama between Meredith (Ellen Pompeo), Finn (Chris O’Donnell), Derek (Patrick Dempsey), and Addison (Kate Walsh) weren’t complicated enough, Finn had to help Meredith, Derek, and Addison say goodbye to Doc after the dog got cancer in Season 2. R.I.P. Doc, a very good boy who didn’t care about silly human love quadrangles.
10. Samuel Avery
Jackson (Jesse Williams) and April (Sarah Drew) were devastated to find out in Season 11 that their unborn son had type II osteogenesis imperfecta and would suffer broken bones in the womb. They decided to induce labor early and cherish a precious few moments with the baby, whom they baptized and named Samuel.
9. Henry Burton
Henry’s (Scott Foley) marriage to Teddy (Kim Raver) went from practical — they tied the knot so he could benefit from her health insurance policy — to romantic. But then he developed a tumor near his heart in Season 8, and not even Cristina (Sandra Oh), who didn’t know his identity until after the operation, could save him.
8. Mary Portman
Bailey (Chandra Wilson) and her patient Mary (Mandy Moore) narrowly survived Season 5’s hospital shooting. But six months later, Mary never woke up after what should have been a routine surgery, for reasons unknown, and that twist of fate left Bailey devastated.
7. Bonnie Crasnoff
Bonnie (Monica Keena) and another patient, Tom (Bruce A. Young), were impaled on the same metal pole in Season 2’s train crash, but the docs chose to prioritize him since he had a better chance of survival. Meredith begged the other docs not to abandon Bonnie, but she was overruled.
6. Mark Sloan
Mark (Eric Dane) looked like he survived the Season 8 plane crash relatively unscathed, but his injuries were all internal, as viewers learned. And despite an apparent uptick in his condition — during which he cracked jokes and even dispensed romantic advice — he eventually succumbed to those injuries.
5. Adele Webber
When Richard (James Pickens Jr.) showed up to Bailey’s wedding in Season 9, Mer knew his wife (Loretta Devine) must not have survived her aneurysm. Turns out, her heart couldn’t handle the strain. And as Bailey had her first dance with Ben (Jason George), Richard imagined one last dance with his bride.
4. George O’Malley
George (T.R. Knight) stepped in front of a bus to save another pedestrian in Season 5, and he was so disfigured in the accident that the docs didn’t even know who he was until he traced his “007” nickname on Meredith’s palm. He and a post-brain surgery Izzie (Katherine Heigl) flatlined simultaneously, but she woke up, and he never did.
3. Derek Shepherd
Grey’s fans never expected the show to kill off McDreamy until it did. In a climactic Season 11 episode, Derek saved the victims of one car crash only to be caught up in another, and if it weren’t for the incompetence at the medical center where he ended up, Meredith would still be married.
2. Denny Duquette
Izzie’s patient boyfriend (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) was felled by a post-op blood clot just before she arrived for Season 2’s hospital prom. “I changed my dress three times,” she tells the other docs. “I wanted to look nice. I would have been here sooner, but I couldn’t figure out which dress to wear.”
1. Lexie Grey
The same plane crash that ultimately killed Mark also killed his “meant to be” love, Lexie (Chyler Leigh), who was crushed by the wreckage of the tail section. He tried his best to free her, but the wreckage couldn’t budge, and as she took her last breaths, he outlined the future he envisioned for her. (We’re not sniffling, you’re sniffling.)
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