Since leaving Grey's Anatomy, both Jackson and April have made guest appearances on the show, and their most recent return could be evidence that a spinoff is in the works for the characters. Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) and April Kepner (Sarah Drew) are among the most beloved couples in Grey's Anatomy's history, and viewers have been looking forward to the potential of a spinoff since they left the series. With Meredith's upcoming move to Boston, where Jackson and April live, that potential just got a lot stronger.

After April left Grey's Anatomy in the season 14 finale and married Matthew, any chance for Jackson and April to reconcile after their season 12 divorce seemed ruined. However, with Jackson's season 17 ending, "Japril" was given hope again, as April agreed to move with Jackson and their daughter to Boston. Season 18 saw them return again, this time as a reconciled couple. Grey's Anatomy season 19, episode 5, "When I Get to the Border," was directed by Jesse Williams, and while Sarah Drew did not appear in the episode, Williams told viewers via Instagram to "watch closely for a consolation prize." This was shown in the camera lingering on a picture of Jackson and April together in their daughter's room, which suggests that not only are they still going strong, but there is a future for the two of them on screen as well.

Related: Why Jackson’s Grey’s Anatomy Exit Worked (And Karev’s Didn’t)

How A Jackson & April Spinoff Would Work

Many people have left Grey's Anatomy and Seattle over the years, and Boston is now home to multiple characters, with Meredith set to be the next addition. When Jackson and April moved, so did Koracick, who also left in season 17, and Catherine, both of whom appeared in the recent episode. This would create a strong core cast of familiar characters through which to build a spinoff, along with Jackson and April. The history of Grey's Anatomy also has strong ties to Boston, as it is where Ellis and Meredith went after leaving Seattle when she was a child and where Maggie grew up after being given up for adoption. This would provide a lot of potential for crossovers between the spinoff and Grey's Anatomy, which has been a focus of showrunner Krista Vernoff as she continues to build the Grey's universe with its current spinoff, Station 19.

The spinoff wouldn't have a central hospital where the doctors would be working, like Grey Sloan Memorial, but rather the Catherine Fox Foundation, which would distinguish it from the surgical drama while still having a focus on medical research. Meredith is moving to Boston to work on Alzheimer's research, and the foundation, which is now run by Jackson, controls about 30 percent of the hospitals in the United States. A spinoff could provide a closer look into what goes into running the foundation, which has provided some interesting storylines in previous seasons. Like all the shows in the Grey's Anatomy universe, this new show would likely still fall under the category of procedural with a healthy dose of personal drama, something Jackson and April have proved to have tons of in the past.

What Has Been Said About A Potential Spinoff

Grey's Anatomy has had three connecting spinoffs, and both Sarah Drew and Jesse Williams are in favor of adding a fourth one to the list. Drew told People in 2021 that a Jackson and April spinoff "would be a really interesting and fun story to tell" and that she "wouldn't discount that as a possibility." Drew left Grey's Anatomy in 2018, but her reappearances have shown that there's more to April's story, and viewers have expressed that they would like to see it. As Williams put it to Insider, "If it's a matter of fan love, we would already be in episode eight of it right now." The actor-director added that the fans "deserve" the Jackson and April Grey's Anatomy spinoff they desire, and he and Sarah had "earned" it, too.

However, Jonnie Davis, the president of the production company ABC Signature, told Deadline last year that there were "no conversations about a spinoff" at the moment, after having previously suggested that they were looking at one. Whether those conversations have changed in the last year remains to be seen, but recent events point toward the possibility. With Grey's Anatomy on its last legs, a Jackson and April spinoff would be a great way to keep the universe alive.

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