Ellis Shepherd is the younger daughter, and youngest child, of Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd. She has an older sister, Zola, and an older brother, Bailey.
Quick Answers
Who are the parents of Ellis Shepherd in Grey's Anatomy?
What is the significance of the timing of Ellis Shepherd's conception in Grey's Anatomy?
How does Meredith Grey handle her pregnancy with Ellis?
Who are Ellis Shepherd's siblings in Grey's Anatomy?
Is Ellis Shepherd related to Ellis Grey in real life?
History[]
Conception and Birth[]
Ellis was likely conceived the day before her father died, as her parents decided to have another baby on that day and then tried and did have one.
After her father's funeral, her mother took her siblings and left Seattle for the duration of her pregnancy, leaving only a note that said, "The kids and I are safe." for friends and family. Despite a placental abruption, which caused Meredith to bleed severely when her water broke, Ellis was delivered successfully in San Diego. ("She's Leaving Home")
Return to Seattle[]
Shortly after her birth, her mother and siblings returned to Seattle. ("She's Leaving Home")
Meredith's Attack[]
A few weeks after Meredith was attacked by a patient, Arizona and Alex brought Zola, Bailey, and Ellis in to see her. However, the three of them were too scared by her appearance and the visit was brief. After she had recovered, the family was happily reunited at home. ("The Sound of Silence")
Thatcher's Death[]
When Thatcher died, he left presents for Ellis, Bailey, and Zola in his closet. Meredith took those present to her kids and told them about their grandpa. ("The Winner Takes It All")
Halloween[]
For Halloween, she was a ballerina. Her mother got out of jail that day too late to go trick or treating with them, but in time to help them sort candy. ("Whistlin' Past the Graveyard")
COVID-19 Pandemic[]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she stayed home with her brother and sister, Amelia, Link, and her new cousin, Scout while her Mom treated COVID patients at the hospital.
Early in the pandemic, Ellis attended her brother's birthday party that year where he stuck his face right in the cake and then licked the icing off his fingers and made a big production of it. This made Ellis, Zola, Meredith, Amelia, Link, and Maggie laugh, something no one had been doing for a while because of the pandemic and the new baby keeping everyone up all night. ("Breathe")
When Amelia realized she'd missed Link's birthday, she convinced the kids to watch a movie by saying it was Link's birthday wish, giving them some free time. ("The Center Won't Hold")
When Meredith was hospitalized with COVID-19, Ellis was eager to talk to her. They were able to talk over Amelia's phone on video chat. ("My Happy Ending")
Shortly after Andrew died, Zola, Bailey, and Ellis had a dance party in the backyard while the grieving adults supervised and tried to figure out how to tell the kids, who had loved Andrew. ("It's All Too Much")
Play Date[]
Zola, Bailey, Ellis, Leo, Allison, and Scout all had a play date together with Teddy and Amelia supervising. They spent most of the day outside, playing on their play set. At the end of the day, Owen came over and told Zola that they'd taken Meredith off the ventilator and she was breathing on her own. Zola happily spread the information to the other kids. ("Breathe")
Visiting Mt. Rainier[]
Later, Eric and Maureen bought an RV, packed it with supplies, and drove it from Colorado to Seattle. For two weeks, they had no contact with anyone but each other. When they arrived in Seattle, they were excited to meet Scout and offered to take all four kids to see Mt. Rainier so Amelia and Link could have some time to themselves. ("Sorry Doesn't Always Make It Right")
Meredith Waking Up[]
Bailey and Ellis stayed home with Maureen while Maggie took Zola to the hospital to see Meredith in the hopes it would help encourage her to wake up. While they were gone, Bailey and Ellis made a fort. When Link and Amelia returned, they asked to be let into the fort. Bailey and Ellis denied them entry without the password. ("Good as Hell")
After her pulmonary studies showed a remarkable improvement in her lung capacity and her labs came out clear, Meredith was discharged from the hospital. Instead of leaving to a fanfare, she had Jackson slip her out the back and drop her off at home, where her kids greeted her happily. Because she hadn't told anyone she was coming, the kids' welcome home poster was unfinished, but she appreciated it anyway and asked her kids to tell her everything that had happened while she was gone. ("Tradition")
As Meredith tried to regain her strength after spending so much time in the hospital, she and Ellis tossed a ball back and forth in the backyard. ("I'm Still Standing")
Christmas[]
Meredith, Amelia, Link, Owen, and Teddy spent Christmas together with all their children. At this celebration, Owen proposed to Teddy for the second time and she accepted. ("Someone Saved My Life Tonight")
Maggie and Winston's Wedding[]
In August 2020, Ellis attended Maggie and Winston's backyard wedding. However, at the wedding, Maggie's father and Winston's grandmother opposed the wedding, wanting to wait until more people could attend, so the wedding was postponed. Ellis immediately asked if she could get cake and was delighted when Maggie said she could. In April 2021, a new wedding was planned and they all attended. Ellis walked down the aisle with her mother and siblings to spread flower petals at the start of the ceremony. During the reception Ellis, along with both of her siblings, held engagement rings for Link as he proposed to Amelia on the beach after the ceremony. ("Someone Saved My Life Tonight")
Thanksgiving[]
When Meredith got stuck in Minnesota when snow caused her flight to be canceled, Amelia was left to cook the meal alone as well as care for all four children by herself. When Link came to drop off Scout and learned this, he decided to stay and help. When he discovered that the oven wasn't on and the turkey was not cooking, he helped her change the meal plan. The kids happily ate the replacement meal when Link said he'd pardoned the turkey. While they ate, Zola asked what an AVM was and Amelia explained. Bailey then asked what sex was, shocking the adults.
After dinner, Link and all four kids had a dance party. ("Everyday Is a Holiday (With You)")
Decorating for Christmas[]
As Christmas approached, Zola, Bailey, and Ellis helped their mother decorate a Christmas tree at their house. ("It Came Upon a Midnight Clear")
Weekend with Maggie and Winston[]
When Meredith traveled to Minnesota to finish up the report on Hamilton's surgery and then spend the weekend with Nick, Zola, Bailey, and Ellis spent the weekend with Maggie and Winston. While fighting with Ellis over a stuffed animal, Bailey ended up cutting his knee. Winston told the kids they were going to play Emergency Room and Zola helped him clean and bandage Bailey's knee. ("The Makings of You")
Meeting Nick[]
When Meredith returned home from her trip to Minnesota to present Hamilton's case to the staff at The Clinic, Nick came with her. They brought pizza to her house and he met her three children. She offered him chocolate pudding surprise, which she had made, telling him the surprise was gummy worms. ("Put the Squeeze On Me")
Meredith's Party[]
When Meredith held a dinner party at her house so that everyone could get to know Nick better, Zola, Bailey, and Ellis attended the party. While they waited for dinner to be ready, they played in the backyard with Amelia and Kai and then played hide and seek. ("Stronger Than Hate")
Halloween[]
Ellis went trick or treating with her siblings and cousin, Scout, on Halloween. She dressed as a chef ("Haunted")
Fire and Move to Boston[]
With the move incoming, the whole family started preparing for the move. When a lightning storm hit, Maggie and Winston stayed at the house with the kids packing things while Meredith worked. They told the kids to stay inside, despite Zola noting the low odds of them being struck by lightning. Later, the kids were scared when lightning struck the house, starting a fire. They quickly evacuated and were reunited with Meredith outside as they watched the firefighters of Station 19 try to put out the fire. Meredith assured them that what was most important was that they were all safe. ("Thunderstruck")
The morning after the fire, Meredith brought all three kids to the station with cookies. Andy let them play in the fire truck while they were there. ("We Build Then We Break")
Two weeks after the fire, Meredith took her kids to the hospital on her last day of work in Seattle. Ellis and Bailey brought gifts for their old daycare teachers and she sent them to distribute them. At the end of the day, they went to the airport and boarded their flight to Boston. Meredith read them Tessa Hobbes' final book during the flight. ("I'll Follow the Sun")
Relationships[]
Familial[]
Ellis lives in Boston with her mother and her two siblings. Her father died before she was born, likely the very day after she was conceived.
Notes and Trivia[]
- She was named after her grandmother, Ellis Grey.
- According to her mother, she looks like her father, Derek Shepherd,[1] though others have said she looks like Meredith[2] and Teddy commented that she looks like her Aunt Amelia.[3]
- She's obsessed with hip hop.[4]
- She is quick to laughter and anger; is smart, pensive, and stubborn; hates pink and purple, but loves brown and green; and gets enraged at the idea of someone cutting down a tree.[5]
Gallery[]
Episodic[]
Episode Stills[]
Appearances[]
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 11 | |||||
| #01 | "I Must Have Lost It on the Wind" | #09 | "Where Do We Go From Here" | #17 | "With or Without You" |
| #02 | "Puzzle With a Piece Missing" | #10 | "The Bed's Too Big Without You" | #18 | "When I Grow Up" |
| #03 | "Got to Be Real" | #11 | "All I Could Do Was Cry" | #19 | "Crazy Love" |
| #04 | "Only Mama Knows" | #12 | "The Great Pretender" | #20 | "One Flight Down" |
| #05 | "Bend & Break" | #13 | "Staring at the End" | #21 | "How to Save a Life" |
| #06 | "Don't Let's Start" | #14 | "The Distance" | #22A #22B |
"She's Leaving Home, Part 1" "She's Leaving Home, Part 2" |
| #07 | "Could We Start Again, Please?" | #15 | "I Feel the Earth Move" | #23 | "Time Stops" |
| #08 | "Risk" | #16 | "Don't Dream It's Over" | #24 | "You're My Home" |
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 12 | |||||
| #01 | "Sledgehammer" | #09 | "The Sound of Silence" | #17 | "I Wear the Face" |
| #02 | "Walking Tall" | #10 | "All I Want is You" | #18 | "There's a Fine, Fine Line" |
| #03 | "I Choose You" | #11 | "Unbreak My Heart" | #19 | "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" |
| #04 | "Old Time Rock and Roll" | #12 | "My Next Life" | #20 | "Trigger Happy" |
| #05 | "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" | #13 | "All Eyez on Me" | #21 | "You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side" |
| #06 | "The Me Nobody Knows" | #14 | "Odd Man Out" | #22 | "Mama Tried" |
| #07 | "Something Against You" | #15 | "I Am Not Waiting Anymore" | #23 | "At Last" |
| #08 | "Things We Lost in the Fire" | #16 | "When It Hurts So Bad" | #24 | "Family Affair" |
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 13 | |||||
| #01 | "Undo" | #09 | "You Haven't Done Nothin'" | #17 | "Till I Hear It From You" |
| #02 | "Catastrophe and the Cure" | #10 | "You Can Look (But You'd Better Not Touch)" | #18 | "Be Still, My Soul" |
| #03 | "I Ain't No Miracle Worker" | #11 | "Jukebox Hero" | #19 | "What's Inside" |
| #04 | "Falling Slowly" | #12 | "None of Your Business" | #20 | "In the Air Tonight" |
| #05 | "Both Sides Now" | #13 | "It Only Gets Much Worse" | #21 | "Don't Stop Me Now" |
| #06 | "Roar" | #14 | "Back Where You Belong" | #22 | "Leave It Inside" |
| #07 | "Why Try to Change Me Now" | #15 | "Civil War" | #23 | "True Colors" |
| #08 | "The Room Where It Happens" | #16 | "Who Is He (And What Is He To You)?" | #24 | "Ring of Fire" |
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 14 | |||||
| #01 | "Break Down the House" | #09 | "1-800-799-7233" | #17 | "One Day Like This" |
| #02 | "Get Off on the Pain" | #10 | "Personal Jesus" | #18 | "Hold Back the River" |
| #03 | "Go Big or Go Home" | #11 | "(Don't Fear) the Reaper" | #19 | "Beautiful Dreamer" |
| #04 | "Ain't That a Kick in the Head" | #12 | "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" | #20 | "Judgment Day" |
| #05 | "Danger Zone" | #13 | "You Really Got a Hold on Me" | #21 | "Bad Reputation" |
| #06 | "Come on Down to My Boat, Baby" | #14 | "Games People Play" | #22 | "Fight For Your Mind" |
| #07 | "Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story" | #15 | "Old Scars, Future Hearts" | #23 | "Cold as Ice" |
| #08 | "Out of Nowhere" | #16 | "Caught Somewhere in Time" | #24 | "All of Me" |
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 15 | |||||
| #01 | "With a Wonder and a Wild Desire" | #10 | "Help, I'm Alive" | #19 | "Silent All These Years" |
| #02 | "Broken Together" | #11 | "The Winner Takes It All" | #20 | "The Whole Package" |
| #03 | "Gut Feeling" | #12 | "Girlfriend in a Coma" | #21 | "Good Shepherd" |
| #04 | "Momma Knows Best" | #13 | "I Walk the Line" | #22 | "Head Over High Heels" |
| #05 | "Everyday Angel" | #14 | "I Want a New Drug" | #23 | "What I Did for Love" |
| #06 | "Flowers Grow Out of My Grave" | #15 | "We Didn't Start the Fire" | #24 | "Drawn to the Blood" |
| #07 | "Anybody Have a Map?" | #16 | "Blood and Water" | #25 | "Jump Into the Fog" |
| #08 | "Blowin' in the Wind" | #17 | "And Dream of Sheep" | ||
| #09 | "Shelter from the Storm" | #18 | "Add It Up" | ||
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 16 | |||||
| #01 | "Nothing Left to Cling To" | #08 | "My Shot" | #15 | "Snowblind" |
| #02 | "Back in the Saddle" | #09 | "Let's All Go to the Bar" | #16 | "Leave a Light On" |
| #03 | "Reunited" | #10 | "Help Me Through the Night" | #17 | "Life on Mars?" |
| #04 | "It's Raining Men" | #11 | "A Hard Pill to Swallow" | #18 | "Give a Little Bit" |
| #05 | "Breathe Again" | #12 | "The Last Supper" | #19 | "Love of My Life" |
| #06 | "Whistlin' Past the Graveyard" | #13 | "Save the Last Dance for Me" | #20 | "Sing It Again" |
| #07 | "Papa Don't Preach" | #14 | "A Diagnosis" | #21 | "Put on a Happy Face" |
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 17 | |||||
| #01 | "All Tomorrow's Parties" | #07 | "Helplessly Hoping" | #13 | "Good as Hell" |
| #02 | "The Center Won't Hold" | #08 | "It's All Too Much" | #14 | "Look Up Child" |
| #03 | "My Happy Ending" | #09 | "In My Life" | #15 | "Tradition" |
| #04 | "You'll Never Walk Alone" | #10 | "Breathe" | #16 | "I'm Still Standing" |
| #05 | "Fight the Power" | #11 | "Sorry Doesn't Always Make It Right" | #17 | "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" |
| #06 | "No Time for Despair" | #12 | "Sign O' the Times" | ||
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 18 | |||||
| #01 | "Here Comes the Sun" | #08 | "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" | #15 | "Put It to the Test" |
| #02 | "Some Kind of Tomorrow" | #09 | "No Time to Die" | #16 | "Should I Stay or Should I Go" |
| #03 | "Hotter Than Hell" | #10 | "Living In a House Divided" | #17 | "I'll Cover You" |
| #04 | "With a Little Help From My Friends" | #11 | "Legacy" | #18 | "Stronger Than Hate" |
| #05 | "Bottle Up and Explode!" | #12 | "The Makings of You" | #19 | "Out for Blood" |
| #06 | "Everyday Is a Holiday (With You)" | #13 | "Put the Squeeze On Me" | #20 | "You Are the Blood" |
| #07 | "Today Was a Fairytale" | #14 | "Road Trippin'" | ||
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 19 | |||||
| #01 | "Everything Has Changed" | #08 | "All Star" | #15 | "Mama Who Bore Me" |
| #02 | "Wasn't Expecting That" | #09 | "Love Don't Cost a Thing" | #16 | "Gunpowder and Lead" |
| #03 | "Let's Talk About Sex" | #10 | "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" | #17 | "Come Fly With Me" |
| #04 | "Haunted" | #11 | "Training Day" | #18 | "Ready to Run" |
| #05 | "When I Get to the Border" | #12 | "Pick Yourself Up" | #19 | "Wedding Bell Blues" |
| #06 | "Thunderstruck" | #13 | "Cowgirls Don't Cry" | #20 | "Happily Ever After?" |
| #07 | "I'll Follow the Sun" | #14 | "Shadow of Your Love" | ||
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 20 | |||||
| #01 | "We've Only Just Begun" | #05 | "Never Felt So Alone" | #09 | "I Carry Your Heart" |
| #02 | "Keep the Family Close" | #06 | "The Marathon Continues" | #10 | "Burn It Down" |
| #03 | "Walk on the Ocean" | #07 | "She Used to Be Mine" | ||
| #04 | "Baby Can I Hold You" | #08 | "Blood, Sweat and Tears" | ||
| Station 19, Season 6 | |||||
| #01 | "Twist and Shout" | #07 | "We Build Then We Break" | #13 | "It's All Gonna Break" |
| #02 | "Everybody's Got Something to Hide Except Me and My Monkey" | #08 | "I Know A Place" | #14 | "Get It All Out" |
| #03 | "Dancing With Our Hands Tied" | #09 | "Come As You Are" | #15 | "What Are You Willing to Lose" |
| #04 | "Demons" | #10 | "Even Better Than the Real Thing" | #16 | "Dirty Laundry" |
| #05 | "Pick Up The Pieces" | #11 | "Could I Leave You?" | #17 | "All These Things That I've Done" |
| #06 | "Everybody Says Don't" | #12 | "Never Gonna Give You Up" | #18 | "Glamorous Life" |
References[]
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