Shondaland continues to grow with a “Grey’s Anatomy” spin-off in the works, but the upcoming firefighter drama is still unnamed.
“The truth of the matter is coming up with a title is one of the most challenging things that we do, quite honestly,” ABC Entertainment President Channing Dungey told TheWrap at a Television Critics Association panel on Monday in Pasadena, Calif.
“When I was a young executive and we were about to come out with ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ that was a show that famously didn’t have a title until literally right before the air,” Dungey said. She added that while there are still “a number of different options and ideas,” ABC has yet to land on the perfect title for the spinoff.
Since it’s slated to debut this spring, it might still be a while until we know the name of the new show, which will follow Jason George’s character Dr. Ben Warren as he switches careers from surgeon to firefighter. “We really want to make sure that what we settle on is the perfect [title],” Dungey said.
She went on to explain that because it’s a spinoff of “Grey’s Anatomy,” using that as a placeholder is working for now. “We didn’t want to come out with something at TCA and then change it a couple weeks later,” she said.
The yet-to-be-named spinoff will have a special two-hour premiere on Thursday March 22 from 9-11 p.m. before it settles into its regular Thursday 9 p.m. airtime (after — you guessed it — “Grey’s Anatomy”).