Crew The season was produced by Touchstone Television
ABC Studios,
The Mark Gordon Company,
ShondaLand, and was distributed by
Buena Vista International, Inc. The executive producers were creator
Shonda Rhimes,
Betsy Beers,
Mark Gordon,
Krista Vernoff,
Rob Corn,
Mark Wilding,
Joan Rater, and
James D. Parriott. The regular directors were
Rob Corn,
Eric Stoltz, and
Tom Verica.
Casting The fifth season had 13 roles receiving star-billing, with 12 of them returning from the previous season, out of which 8 are part of the original cast from
the first season. All of the 13 regulars portray surgeons who work in the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital.
Ellen Pompeo continued her role as
protagonist and
narrator of the series,
Dr. Meredith Grey, a
resident physician and a
surgeon.
Sandra Oh played resident
Dr. Cristina Yang, best-friend of Meredith and fellow surgeon.
Katherine Heigl portrayed resident
Dr. Isobel "Izzie" Stevens whose previous relationship with the now-deceased patient
Denny Duquette threatens her career once again.
Justin Chambers acted as surgical resident
Dr. Alexander "Alex" Karev who becomes Izzie's husband, while
T. R. Knight portrayed
Dr. George O'Malley, an insecure resident whose sensitive personality puts his life in danger.
General surgeon and
Chief Resident Dr. Miranda Bailey was portrayed by
Chandra Wilson, while
general surgeon and Chief of Surgery
Dr. Richard Webber was played by
James Pickens, Jr.
Sara Ramirez portrayed
orthopedic surgeon Dr. Calliope "Callie" Torres whose storylines during the season revolve around her recently discovered
bisexuality.
Eric Dane's character,
plastic surgeon Dr. Mark Sloan, begins a relationship with intern
Dr. Lexie Grey, Meredith's half-sister portrayed by
Chyler Leigh.
Brooke Smith appeared in 7 episodes as
cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. Erica Hahn, Callie's love-interest, who eventually resigns and moves away.
Patrick Dempsey portrayed
neurosurgeon Dr. Derek Shepherd whose relationship with Meredith Grey is the series' main storyline. Although originally introduced as a recurring character in the season premiere,
trauma surgeon Dr. Owen Hunt was promoted to a series-regular in the fourteenth episode of the season "Beat Your Heart Out". He was portrayed by
Kevin McKidd and was conceived as a love-interest to resident
Cristina Yang. Originally only signed onto the show until December 2008, it was later announced Kevin McKidd would be promoted to
regular status after his fifth episode on the series aired. He was promoted in the fourteenth episode "Beat Your Heart Out" after 11 guest star appearances.
Shonda Rhimes said, "I am excited to have Kevin McKidd joining us for the season, he's been a delight to collaborate with and brings incredible passion, talent and creativity to his work." Weeks after Hunt's first appearance on the show, Matt Roush of
TVGuide comments that "Hunt/McKidd is the most encouraging thing to happen to ''Grey's Anatomy
in quite a while." Robert Rorke of the New York Post'' states that McKidd was brought in as Hunt to "boost the sagging fortunes" of the show's ratings. Kelley L. Carter of
USA Today, describes Hunt as "hardcore" and "the
antithesis of the other males on the show." Numerous supporting characters have been given expansive and recurring appearances in the progressive storyline, including:
Melissa George as
Sadie Harris,
Kimberly Elise as Dr. Jo Swender,
Jessica Capshaw as
Dr. Arizona Robbins,
Amy Madigan as Dr. Wyatt,
Mary McDonnell as Dr. Virginia Dixon,
Eric Stoltz as William Dunn,
Jennifer Westfeldt as Jen Harmon,
Ben Shenkman as Rob Harmon,
Shannon Lucio as Amanda and
Samantha Mathis as Melinda.
Héctor Elizondo returned as a guest star in the role of Carlos Torres,
Callie's father.
Private Practice guest star
Grant Show portrays Dr. Archer Montgomery, the brother of former series-regular Dr.
Dr. Addison Montgomery in one episode.
Shannon Lucio portrays Amanda in the fifth season finale, a witness to the John Doe bus accident in the finale, and returns in the following season's two-part premiere "
Good Mourning" and "
Goodbye". In the fifth season, 5 actors were given special guest-star billing, with 3 roles being reprised from a previous season.
Jeffrey Dean Morgan returned as the deceased
Denny Duquette in Izzie's hallucinations due to a brain tumor. Former series-regular
Kate Walsh also returned as Dr. Addison Montgomery for two episodes ("Before and After", "An Honest Mistake") as part of a four-part crossover with her spin-off series,
Private Practice. Her fellow cast member
Audra McDonald reprises the role of
Naomi Bennett from the
third season two-parter "
The Other Side of This Life", which functioned as a
backdoor pilot for the spin-off. She replaces
Merrin Dungey in the role, who was recast after the two-part episode aired. McDonald is joined by
Taye Diggs as
Sam Bennett, who portrays McDonald's ex-husband for the episode "Before and After" as part of the crossover event.
Tyne Daly joined the series in the role of Carolyn Shepherd (née Maloney), Derek's mother in the episode "Sympathy for the Devil". This was Daly's only appearance in the series until the
fifteenth season episode, "
Good Shepherd", which aired in 2019. == Reception ==