The current season of Grey's Anatomy has been heartbreaking, with Meredith seeing Derek on a beach and the doctors dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. The other seasons have featured some very sad stories, too, but the combination of medical cases and the characters' love lives have always kept fans captivated. Not all shows can last for this many seasons but Grey's has never slowed down.

Whether Grey's Anatomy ends with season 17 or Ellen Pompeo will sign on for season 18, many fans have come up with some theories about how the show will wrap up. Let's take a look at how some viewers think Meredith and company will say goodbye.

Meredith Has Alzheimer's

While some fans think Meredith and Derek were problematic, there's no question that Grey's Anatomy revolves around Ellen Pompeo's character, and fans have some ideas about the show's end.

One popular fan theory is that at the end of the show, Meredith has Alzheimer's and she has been attempting to remind herself of her life. According to one fan's explanation on Reddit, "Since Meredith is the narrator for most episodes it would be interesting to have an early Alzheimer's Meredith telling the story of her life to her kids to try to get her to remember."

Another fan posted that if Meredith has Alzheimer's, perhaps the show ends with Zola finding her mom's journals and reading them. This would be a parallel to how Meredith learned about her mother Ellis through her diaries.

In a similar vein, another fan shared that perhaps the series will end with Meredith in a nursing home. The show has been flashbacks of her life. This makes sense, but it would be pretty heartbreaking.

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Other Fan Theories

Another fan theory is that Meredith's children Zola and Bailey become interns at the hospital. The fan wrote on Reddit, "Zola and/or Bailey are now going to be interns at Grey Sloan Memorial. Meredith is now the Chief of Surgery there and she gives either one of them the same speech that Webber gave her intern class in the first episode. Zola and/or Bailey are the kids of famous surgeons just like Meredith was with Ellis. The carousel keeps on going."

Another fan suggested on Reddit that perhaps the hospital's elevator will be in the final scene or will at least play a big part in the final episode. They mentioned that it's "an essential part to almost every episode" and that a lot of drama takes place here. That's definitely an interesting idea as many characters have dealt with some tense moments in those elevators.

Many fans have posted on Reddit that it would be wonderful for the final episode to feature characters who passed away. One shared that maybe Meredith dies in the last episode and then she's with the ghosts of those beloved characters, from Lexie to Mark to Derek. Other fans didn't think that Meredith would die, but they did think that she would be seen in the hospital with the spirits of those other doctors around her. This seems like something that could happen since the current season has featured Meredith being visited by both Derek and George O'Malley.

Fans definitely want to see Meredith succeed. One said she could become Chief of Surgery, and another suggested winning the Harper Avery award. If she doesn't end up getting Alzheimer's, then this seems like a possibility.

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What Shonda Rhimes Says

It's interesting to hear what Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes has to say about how the show will end.

Shonda Rhimes says there's a good chance she will be involved in the finale. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, she said, "I absolutely can see myself being part of it." She continued that she had attempted to think about endings but then stopped doing that.

Rhimes explained, "I have written the end of the show at least six times. Seriously, every time I felt like, 'this will be how the show ends,' we’ve gone past those moments so many times that I’ve stopped trying to come up with envision for it. We just don’t end. I have no idea now. Krista and I have joked that my daughter, Harper, and her daughter Coco will end up running the show one day."

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While fans never want to say goodbye to Meredith and the other beloved characters on Grey's Anatomy, of course, one day the series finale will air. These fan theories offer some interesting ideas about what could take place. While it's hard to wait, at least viewers know that they will get some great episodes before the finale airs.

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