Grey’s Anatomy Stars Scrub Up Well in Emmys Reunion Nearly 19 Years After Show’s Debut

The doctors of Gray Sloan Memorial Hospital reunited for the 2023 Emmy Awards!

Original cast members Katherine Heigl and Justin Chambers — who left the hit ABC medical drama in 2010 and 2020, respectively — joined former costars Ellen Pompeo, James Pickens Jr. supporting actor in a limited or anthology series or film.

“When is the first episode Grey’s Anatomy aired in March 2005, I’m not sure if Shonda Rhimes knew she had created a series that would have a lasting impact on television and create lifelong friendships,” Pompeo began.

Chandra Wilson, Justin Chambers, Ellen Pompeo, Katherine Heigl and James Pickens at the Emmy Awards.

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Chambers continued, noting that the series and its “400 episodes and counting” have become “a tribute to everyone who is now a part of our family.” While there have been “some changes over the years,” Heigl added, there was “one thing that has remained constant” — Grey’s Anatomy‘incredible fan base’.

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“You’ve stuck with us through plane crashes, super storms, earthquakes and a global pandemic,” Wilson said. “And as we begin our 20th season, we’re officially the longest-running prime-time medical drama in TV history.”

“And it wouldn’t be possible without all of you,” Pickens continued before Heigl introduced the nominees. “So to all our fans and all of you – we thank you.”

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Justin Chambers and Katherine Heigl on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’.

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While speaking with PEOPLE on the red carpet, Heigl called their upcoming reunion a “weird nostalgic walk down memory lane.”

Although she hasn’t seen Wilson in “15 years” and Chambers in “maybe 10,” the actress explained that her former co-stars are “people who mean a lot to me.”

“I miss them, so it’s very nice,” she added.

Chandra Wilson, Justin Chambers, Ellen Pompeo, Katherine Heigl and James Pickens at the 2023 Emmy Awards.

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Meanwhile, the reunion comes almost exactly four years after Chambers, who played Dr. Alex Karev on the show, announced his retirement from the show.

“It’s not a good time to say goodbye to a show and a character that has defined so much of my life for the past 15 years,” Chambers said in a statement to PEOPLE at the time. “For some time, however, I had hoped to diversify my acting roles and career choices. And, as I turn 50 and am blessed with an amazing, supportive wife and five beautiful children, now is the time.”

He added: “As I move from Grey’s AnatomyI want to thank ABC Family, Shonda Rimes, original cast members Ellen Pompeo, Chandra Wilson and James Pickens, and the rest of the amazing cast and crew, past and present, and, of course, the fans for an amazing ride.”

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Justin Chambers and Katherine Heigl on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’.

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Heigl, who played Dr. Izzie Stevens, left Grey’s Anatomy almost a decade before Chambers. In an interview with PEOPLE in 2021, the Firefly Lane star reflected on her decision, which came after she withdrew herself from the 2008 Emmy competition and voiced several other comments and complaints, earning her the dreaded “difficult” label.

“I know there’s a better way to deal with these things than I do,” Heigl, 45, admitted. “I could have handled it with more grace.”

“Actually I don’t regret leaving Grey’s Anatomy — I did the right thing for myself and my family — but I regret the increased drama I felt at the time,” she added. “If only I had known about meditation at the time, or talked to a therapist or someone who would have helped me get through the part of the fear I was mired in, I think I would have been calmer in the way I approached the boundaries I needed to set in order to thrive.”

Still, Heigl has fond memories of her time at what was then known as Seattle Grace Hospital, and the actress said she would “never say never” to returning to the show.

“When I look back Grey’s Anatomy, it’s been such a really amazing experience,” she says. “Sometimes it feels like a dream, all of us in it together like that. I’m grateful for all of it — and I’m so grateful that I’m old enough to let it teach me something.”

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Ellen Pompeo, James Pickens Jr. and Chandra Wilson on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’.

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Along with Heigl, Chambers, Pompeo, Pickens Jr. and Wilson, the original cast Grey’s Anatomy they included Patrick Dempsey, Sandra Oh, TR Knight and Isaiah Washington.

Last season, Pompeo retired from Grey’s Anatomy pursue outside projects, including Hulu Orphan, and appeared in only eight episodes. The series also introduced a new roster of interns starring Nick Therho, Adelaide Kane, Midori Francis, Harry Shum Jr. and Alexis Floyd.

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Watch PEOPLE’s complete coverage of the 75th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards as it airs live on Fox from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.

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