Everything ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Alums Sarah Drew and Jesse Williams Have Said About a Japril Spinoff

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Everything 'Grey's Anatomy' Alums Sarah Drew and Jesse Williams Have Said About a Japril Spinoff

The more Japril, the better? It seems both Grey’s Anatomy fans and Jackson (Jesse Williams) and April (Sarah Drew) are on board for more content from the onscreen couple after the actors’ respective exits from the long-running medical drama. Williams and Drew both joined the cast of Grey’s Anatomy during season 6 and their characters took their friendship to the next level during season 8. "I remember you showed up with a whole marked-up script with script ideas," Drew recalled to Insider in 2022 about Williams’ excitement about their characters getting together. He added, "I got in trouble for that.” Jackson and April’s relationship had several ups and downs over the years, with April leaving Matthew (Justin Bruening) on their wedding day to run off with Jackson, the spouses losing a child and ultimately ending their marriage in divorce after welcoming daughter Harriet. When Drew exited Grey’s in 2018, her character was reunited with Matthew. When it was time for Williams to leave the show in 2021, however, Drew returned and fans learned April and Matthew were on the rocks. "The pitch that was given to me was April was super pregnant with Matthew's baby and Matthew wasn't home when Jackson came to the house to pitch April on the idea of going to Boston with him," Drew told Insider in 2021. "There was a storm outside and Jackson had to deliver April's baby at the house, and through this whole experience, April decided to bring her whole family to Boston with Jackson." [jwplayer eeviDrwD-zhNYySv2] The actors, however, fought for a different story line to give fans hope that Japril could reunite off screen. "Jesse and I talked about it and thought it would be more satisfying to the audience if they were left with some hope for Japril reuniting," she continued. "Jesse pitched that to the writers and the writers agreed — and then the story shifted." One year later, Grey’s Anatomy enlisted the pair to return to Seattle again for the 400th episode in May 2022 and fans indeed learned — via a sweet kiss in the elevator — that the couple was back on. Drew subsequently told Deadline that she hopes the story isn’t over yet. “It definitely leaves open the possibility that you might be checking in with them,” the Cruel Summer alum said in May 2022. “After the script was released, I had texts flying in from cast and crew asking if I was coming back next year because of how the episode ends. But as of now, that is not on the table. It’s not something that anyone has discussed with me in any kind of official capacity. But there’s a lot of open-ended questions at the end of this episode. I think you’ll leave this episode with giant question marks: Where do we go from here? How is the hospital going to recover? What is going to happen? What is the next year gonna look like? So I think there are a million questions and a million possibilities.” Scroll through for more from Drew and Williams about a potential Japril-focused series:

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When Did Japril Spinoff Talks Begin?

“How cool would that show be?” Drew asked reporters after her May 2021 return as April. “I gotta be honest. I’ve been on Twitter and Japril was, I think, trending worldwide all day. It was absolute insanity.”

She added at the time that some crew members thought Drew was back on the set for a spinoff when she returned for one episode. “They were like, ‘Oh, we thought this was a spinoff.’ It feels like it’s setting up for a really great journey,” she recalled. “And I was like, ‘I know.’ How amazing and needed is a show about racial justice in the medical field and inequity and equality. How amazing would that be?”

Credit: ABC/Richard Cartwright

Is ABC On Board With a Japril Spinoff?

When asked about talks of future Grey’s Anatomy spinoffs in May 2021, ABC Entertainment and Hulu Originals President Craig Erwich replied, “We are always open to any iteration that will serve the show and the fans.”

He later clarified his comments in a statement to Deadline: “There are no conversations about a spinoff of Grey’s Anatomy at this time. We are 100 percent focused on producing season 18, with the incredible Krista Vernoff at the helm, and the amazing Ellen Pompeo leading our ensemble and co-executive producing. As the leader of ABC Signature, I meant only to convey my support and optimism for Shonda’s brilliant creation.”

Credit: Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

Are Sarah Drew and Jesse Williams On Board With a Japril Spinoff?

Both actors have said that they would sign on for a new show, with Drew telling People in May 2022 that the former costars have talked “at length” about a spinoff.

"I think it would be a really interesting and fun story to tell. Jesse and I obviously love working together, and we have a really tremendous partnership, so I wouldn't discount that as a possibility,” she said. "As of yet, it's only living in the fandom right now.”

The Take Me Out star, for his part, told Insider in March 2022: "If it's a matter of fan love, we would already be in episode eight of it right now. If there's such a thing that's deserving it, they deserve it and we've earned it and it would be dope."

Credit: ABC/Liliane Lathan

What Would the Premise of a Japril Spinoff Be?

Williams noted it made “total sense” to create a show about Jackson and April’s life in Boston helping underrepresented communities through the Avery family's foundation.

"It's a really interesting premise. We would kill it,” he told Insider in June 2021. “I won't say it's not a possibility. I sure as hell won't say that."

Credit: ABC/Liliane Lathan

Have Sarah Drew and Jessie Williams Pitched Japril Spinoffs Before?

In March 2022, the Moms’ Night Out actress revealed that the costars pitched a show about their characters after April leaves Matthew for Jackson in the season 10 finale.

"We had a whole pitch for an entire series based on that road trip," she told Insider, adding that their idea is why the season 12 Japril episode “Unbreak My Heart" was written years later.

Credit: ABC/Mike Rosenthal

Could the Japril Spinoff Be a Prequel?

Although many Japril fans are dying to know what comes next for the couple, Drew is interested in going back in their timeline.

"I'd like to kind of go back in time to see them get back together. You know, we got that little tiny piece where the audience was informed that they had come back together, but I'd like to see that happen. I'd like to see the push and pull and the will they won't they and all that stuff," the Radio actress exclusively told Us Weekly in September 2022.

The New York native added that she thinks a potential spinoff should follow the duo as they "fight for medical justice."