Jason George Talks Grey’s Anatomy’s Long Run and Family (Exclusive)

Jason George credits his career longevity to family—the Station 19 actor, who played Dr. Ben Warren, on the series for seven seasons, first originated the character on Grey’s Anatomy. Here, he speaks about the long-running ABC medical drama and his reasons for standing on business.

You returned full-time to “Grey’s Anatomy” in September 2024 after six seasons on “Station 19.” How does it feel to be back on the longest-running medical drama in television history, and what do you enjoy most about playing Dr. Ben Warren?

It was like coming home! I had been recurring on Grey’s for years while still being a series regular on other shows. I had a pilot for Shonda Rhimes and another series for ABC, all while I was still playing Ben Warren on Grey’s, where it turned into a full-time series regular role, and a year and a half later, they spun me off on this new series, Station 19. I wasn’t sure at first about the role, but the executives said, “Trust us.” We did seven seasons on the show, and it was an absolute blast. The good part is I never fully left (Grey’s). I came back and guest-starred on Grey’s Anatomy the entire time. Chandra Wilson, who plays Miranda Bailey, kept coming over to Station 19 guest starring, so it was like one big family. The analogy I use that I think holds is, “There is the house you grew up in (parents’ house), and then you go out and make your own house, but it’s still home. Your room is still your room.” I came back to Grey’s, and everything is still the way I left it. There are some new faces. I had to get to know them a bit, but it’s the family—they’re all good people. Funny people. It’s a well-oiled machine, and we have a good time.

I’m family first forever

What have you learned from your three decades in television, film, and stage that has contributed to your longevity in the industry? You don’t look a day over twenty-one.

“Oh, twenty-one,” Go ahead, I’ll take it. I’m trying to think of the last time I got carded. Wow! (laugh).

What have I learned? That’s a deep question. A few things. The first is to “Be good at your job. The second, “Make places better for you, having been there.” I’ve gotten from a few people, like the power execs of shows, that I try to make the television/movie sets better by being there. I try to play team ball, and I’m always going to protect my character because that’s my job first and foremost. Be good at your job. Play that character. Protect that character. Advocate for that character and try to make it a good environment and a positive place to work. The other part is to stand in your integrity, which means something, and it registers. I remember a manager said to me early on, he said, “No’s carry weight and don’t say yes to everything.” That’s real, but don’t say no for the sake of saying no. Don’t say no as a negotiating tactic necessarily. Say no because I don’t dig the material. It doesn’t work for me. It doesn’t further things for me. Say no because it’s not what I’m about for my family right now. I’ve turned down jobs because it was going to take me away from my family for too long. I can do anything for 4-8 weeks because I can bounce home every two to three weeks, but if you’re talking about a series that’s going to go for 8-9 months and could last for 5-6 years, that’s a scenario that may not work for my family. I’m family first forever.

What do you think is the reason “Grey’s Anatomy has lasted for so long? What do you believe is the key factor for its 21-season run?

We’re going on Season 22. We just got picked up for another season. Knock on wood. Thank all powers that be. I thought about it (in this way). My daughter, I have twins, a boy and a girl, and during the pandemic, she binged-watched all of Grey’s Anatomy twice… by the way, I’ve heard this from many other people that high school students around 9th grade, give or take a year or two, like the show. I’m going to get technical for a second. Usually, a hit show captures the key demographic advertisers want. Ages 18-35, but then as the show goes on, that demographic goes on too and gets older and moves out of the key demo, and usually that show loses that key demographic. With streaming, Grey’s Anatomy kept airing for that demographic, and the show’s content rings true to those kids and the people who have grown (aged) through the show. I’m starting to think these young are saying, “I’ve began a new thing (in life), I feel like I’m learning too much, I’m starting to drink from a firehose of knowledge, I feel like I’m failing all the time, I’m trying find some people who support me, who are my people, I’m trying to find love, I’m trying to find my life.” Now, I’m asking in thought, “Are you starting medical school like on Grey’s Anatomy, or starting high school, or are you starting college, or that new job you picked up at forty?” My point is there is a reliability to a lot of different phases of life that high schoolers latch onto and go, “That’s what it feels like for me every day. That’s what it feels like for me in this new phase of life.” And their binge watching keeps Grey’s relevance going, and that is my scientific diagnosis explanation (laugh).

Outside of acting, you are active in mentorship, diversity, and gun violence, particularly your work with “Everytown for Gun Safety” and “Moms Demand Action.” Why is speaking up important, especially when people worry about the cancel culture?

Speaking up is important because all the quotes you’ve heard are true: “Be the change you want to see in the world.” My mom was a single mother raising three sons, and I like to think that she raised us right. And “You don’t get to complain if you ain’t trying to make some change. If you are not trying to be a part of the solution.” My mom was the president of the teachers’ union where I grew up, and she was always trying to make life better for students and educators. She role-modeled that for us, and I try to do that with the platform I have.

We had gun violence in our family in a number of different avenues. My cousin was a victim of gun violence. His murderer was never found. We’ve had family members who were victims of domestic abuse, and guns were involved. We had family members on the other side of that, who were incredibly good human beings who had access in a heightened moment with people they cared too much about. Those individuals are never going to see the outside of a jail cell. I’ve seen it from all different angles, and I’m from a military town in Virginia, so guns are normal. I’m not scared of guns. And when I talk to people who are one-sided, staunchly on the pro-gun side, I can deactivate that quickly and use my life experience to help change people. I try to communicate that way, “I’m not trying to win, I’m trying to solve problems because that’s what Mama did.”

What is next for Jason George? How do you plan to continue championing diversity and preserving the acting profession for future generations?

It’s all in the incubator right now. My brother and I are producing some projects, and we’re excited about that. I’m trying to direct more, and I do a lot of work with SAG-AFTRA. I sit on that board, where I do a lot of my DEI work. Through that, I’ve joined the SAG Awards committee, which actually makes me a producer on the SAG Awards. I want to tell stories that mean something to people and show something in the world you haven’t seen before, stories I would have liked to have seen when I was a kid, when I was coming up. My brother and I are doing that right now. That’s the stuff we got in the hopper, and when it gets to the next stage, you’ll definitely be hearing about it.

We shared with Jason that, looking at his bio on Instagram, it reads… Father. Make-believer. True-believer. In need of a pain reliever. We interpreted it to mean…

Father (family), Make-believer (actor), True-believer (faith), and in need of a pain reliever (life happens), and we asked him if we’re pretty close. “Dead-on,” he responded. I’ve got one speed (in life): I just go, and family comes first (with my wife and kids), and all the other stuff Jason says, he finds meaningful in the world.