ShondaLand

ShondaLand

Type	Private
Industry	Television
Founded	2005 (Los Angeles, California)
Founder	Shonda Rhimes
Headquarters	Los Angeles, California
Key people	Shonda Rhimes (Chairwoman/CEO) Betsy Beers
Products	Grey's Anatomy (2005–present) Private Practice (2007–2013) Off the Map (2011) Scandal (2012–present) How To Get Away With Murder (2014–present) The Catch (2016–present) Still Star-Crossed (Coming 2017)
Owner	Shonda Rhimes

ShondaLand is an American television production company founded by television writer/producer Shonda Rhimes.^[1] She founded it to be one of the production companies of her first series Grey's Anatomy in 2005. It has since gone on to produce Rhimes's other creations, Grey's spinoff Private Practice and the widely popular political drama Scandal, and her other productions—the short-lived Off the Map, the Viola Davis-starring legal thriller How to Get Away with Murder, and the crime thriller The Catch—all of which are co-produced with ABC Studios and air on ABC.

Thank God It's Thursday

In 2014, ABC programmed its entire Thursday primetime lineup with ShondaLand dramas Grey's Anatomy, Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder and The Catch then branded the night as "Thank God It's Thursday" (or "TGIT").^[2] This echoes ABC's former TGIF branding of its Friday night family sitcoms and even NBC's Must See TV promotion of formidable Thursday night television hits in the 1990s. Thursday is an especially important night for American television networks because it is the last chance for advertisers of weekend purchases like movies and cars to reach a large TV audience, and networks schedule highly rated programming for the night to attract those advertising dollars.^[3] The Associated Press called Rhimes' reign of an entire night of network television "unmatched in TV history".^[4] Social media accounts for each of the shows highlight "TGIT" with various promotional material, occasionally referencing one another — such as when the How to Get Away with Murder Facebook page posted a selfie by Jack Falahee, who plays a character in How to Get Away with Murder, taken in the Oval Office on the set of Scandal. Various actors from the shows also sometimes post pictures of themselves together.

Actors within ShondaLand

Some actors appear on more than one "ShondaLand" show. Characters can be recurring in one series while a main character in another. Currently, Liza Weil, Mimi Kennedy, John Getz, José Zuñig and Cynthia Stevenson are the only actors to make appearances in four out of the six shows.

Actor	Grey's Anatomy	Private Practice	Off the Map	Scandal	How to Get Away with Murder	The Catch	Still Star-Crossed
Mark Adair-Rios	David Morris		Armando Cruz		Dr. Erik Turner
Paul Adelstein	Cooper Freedman			Leo Bergen
Kevin Alejandro	Officer Dan Pruitt					Nathan Ashmore
David Andrews				George Reed		Tony Ellis
Juan Antonio	Hot guy				Levi
Michael Arden	Neal Hannigan		Pher
Wes Armstrong				Chris Armstrong	Bill
Steven W. Bailey	Joe/Jeremy	Joe		Noah Elliot
Alexandra Billings	Donna Gibson				Jill Hartford
Nazanin Boniadi	Amrita			Adnan Salif
Jayne Brook	Gwen Graber	Dr. Meg Porter	Lynn
Alan Brooks				Chairman Mike Snedeker	Grant Hapstall
Dan Bucatinsky	Jeffrey			James Novak
David Burke	Don	Mr. Spencer			Mr. Thomas
John Burke				Paul Mosley	ADA Vince Travers
Jere Burns	Ben Bosco		Richie Salerno
Kate Burton	Ellis Grey			Sally Langston
Catherine Carlen				Governor Kelly Rauch	Judge Emily Hargrove
Justin Chambers	Alex Karev
Jennifer Christopher				Civilian	Gemma Walsh
Shannon Cochran	Mary Singleton		Marian Cooper	Susan Sawyer
Josh Crotty				Secret Service agent		Evan Connors
Valerie Cruz	Zona Cruz		Dr. Zita Alvarez	Carolina Flores
Steven Culp	Dr. Darren Parker				Victor Lesher
Eric Dane	Dr. Mark Sloan
David Denman	Rick Jacobs				Kevin Murphy
Taye Diggs	Dr. Sam Bennett
Julie Dretzin	Carmen Hall				FBI Agent
Sarah Drew	April Kepner	Judy
Patrick Dempsey	Derek Shepherd
Kiran Deol	Young woman				Dr. Lira
Jeff Doucette	Warren Sterman			Warden	Judge George Danvers
Matthew Downs	Frank				Agent Anthony Fain
Stacy Edwards	Kathleen Wheeler	Maria Wilson			Gretchen Thomas
Tony Elias		Collin			Jimmy Wordshaw
Scott Foley	Henry Burton			Jake Ballard
Amanda Foreman	Nora	Katie Kent				Susan Bailey
Jason George	Dr. Ben Warren		Dr. Otis Cole
John Getz	Michael Breyers	Mr. Kent		Patrick Keating	David Dolan
Zach Gilford	Charlie Lowell		Dr. Tommy Fuller
Erica Gimpel	Bethany Anderson					Renée Etheridge
Mary Pat Gleason	Marge Walker			Betsy Ray	Robin Laforge
Misha Gonz-Cirkl	Social worker				Detective Lana Ramos
Nicholas Gonzalez	Clark West		Mateo
April Grace	Greta's Sister		Fran		Judge Renee Garret
Jake Green	Pete Gibson					Seth Hamilton
Tim Griffin	Ronny O'Malley				AUSA Caleb Abernathy
Caitlainne Rose Gurreri	Lori					Marie Sherwood
Barbara Eve Harris		Melinda Stinson			Judge Fiona Pruitt
Roxanne Hart	Dana Seabury	Ellen Miller			Sylvia Mahoney
Pat Healy	Tom Russell				Dennis
Martin Henderson	Dr. Nathan Riggs		Dr. Ben Keeton
Jerrika Hinton	Stephanie Edwards			Hannah
Judith Hoag	Rhada Douglas	Angie McConnell	Margie Packard
Leslie Hope		Linda	Bridget Clemmons
Eamon Hunt	Judge				Judge Colton Lee
Jackson Hurst	Thomas Archibald			Congressman Jacob Shaw		Mario Visconti
Jay Jackson				Mike Waters/News anchor		BNC News anchor
Danielle Kennedy	Angry woman				Nurse
Mimi Kennedy	Verna Bradley	Eleanor Bergin		Sharon Marquette		Virginia Foster
David L. King					Dr. Belridge	William Etheridge
Nicola Lambo				Sienna Rogers		Saleswoman
Damien Leake				Judge Leo Theroux	Dr. Healy
Chyler Leigh	Dr. Lexie Grey
Katie Lowes	Blood donor	Kendra Walker/Kira		Quinn Perkins
Justina Machado	Anna Nyles	Stephanie Kemp	Teresa
Roma Maffia	Roberta Thompson		Matilda
Joshua Malina	Seth Hammer	Jason Windsor		David Rosen
Cheech Marin	Otis Sharon		Papa Ucuma
Nelson Mashita	Proctor				Judge Gene Escobar
Susan May Pratt		Barbara	Becky
Kelly McCreary	Maggie Pierce			Clare Tucker
Michael McGrady	Stanley Singer				AUSA Hobbs
Thomas G. McMahon				Government goon	Lloyd
Joan McMurtrey	Zoey Glass	Jennifer Debray			Helena Hapstall
Abby Miller	Kate Shaw	Simone Parker				Gwen Ericsson
Debra Mooney	Evelyn Hunt	Sylvie		Verna Thornton
Judith Moreland	Mrs. Baer				Judge Virginia Wilder
George Newbern	Stan Mercer	Brian Reynolds		Charlie
Paula Newsome	Mrs. Sturgeon				Joyce Robinson
Dean Norris	Vince		Morris Cooper
Amy Okuda	Chelsea Ansell				Catherine Hapstall
Enuka Okuma	Teresa Brotherton				Nia Lahey
April Parker Jones				Doctor	Detective Claire Bryce
Jeff Perry	Thatcher Grey			Cyrus Beene
Rick Peters	Sean Greene				Detective
Nicole Pettis					Court crier	Robin
James Pickens Jr.	Richard Webber	Richard Webber
Amy Pietz		Isabelle			Sharon Remini
Ellen Pompeo	Meredith Grey
Adina Porter	Dr. Ramsey	Stacy Hatcher				FBI Agent Emily Clark
Sally Pressman	Young Dr. Ellis Grey			Candace Marcus		Stephanie Duncan
Dalila Ali Rajah	Leanne				Judy
Jill Remez	April's examiner				Lucinda Blair
Ron Roggé	Fire captain				Detective Paul Reed
Cristine Rose		Mrs. Freedman			Judge Wenona Sansbury
Jeffrey D. Sams	Andre Barrett				District Attorney
Caterina Scorsone	Amelia Shepherd
Kelsey Scott	Karen				Rose
Samantha Sloyan	Penelope "Penny" Blake	ER Nurse		Jeannine Locke
Patrick St. Esprit				Peter Foster		Phillip Thompson
Lauren Stamile	Nurse Rose		Carla Steele
Darby Stanchfield		Tess Milford		Abby Whelan
Cynthia Stevenson	Ruthie Carlin	Karen	Charlene	Mary Nesbitt
Faran Tahir	Isaac	Charles			Detective Terrence Amos
Tessa Thompson	Camille Travis	Zoe Salter	Sydney
Tamlyn Tomita		Katie's lawyer			Judge Carol Morrow
Jamie Tompkins				Female corporate executive		Tammi Ingram
Mageina Tovah		Rebecca Hobart		Molly Ackerman	Jolene Samuels
Jim Turner	Dr. Schacter				George Gabler
Nia Vardalos	Karen					Leah Wells
Tracy Vilar	Becca McMurdo				Prosecutor Barker
Sonya Walger				Katherine Winslow		Margot Bishop
Kate Walsh	Addison Montgomery
Nick Warnock	SWAT Guy #2				Attorney Trent Stockton
Derek Webster	Paul Anderson					Dr. Richard Watkins
Liza Weil	Alison Clark	Andi		Amanda Tanner	Bonnie Winterbottom
Michael Welch				Officer Newton		Teddy Seavers
Wayne Wilderson	Bill Adams	Neil Denhom			Eastham
Chandra Wilson	Miranda Bailey
Tom Verica	Michael Norris			Co-executive producer	Sam Keating
Bellamy Young	Kathy			Melody "Mellie" Grant
José Zuñiga	Anthony Meloy		Julio	General Benicio Flores	Laurel's Dad

Television series

Series	Season		Episodes	Originally aired		Showrunner(s)	Status
				First aired	Last aired
Grey's Anatomy		1	9	March 27, 2005	May 22, 2005	Shonda Rhimes	Released
		2	27	September 25, 2005	May 15, 2006
		3	25	September 21, 2006	May 17, 2007
		4	17	September 27, 2007	May 22, 2008
		5	24	September 25, 2008	May 14, 2009
		6	24	September 24, 2009	May 20, 2010
		7	22	September 23, 2010	May 19, 2011
		8	24	September 22, 2011	May 17, 2012	Tony Phelan & Joan Ratner[5]
		9	24	September 27, 2012	May 16, 2013
		10	24	September 26, 2013	May 15, 2014
		11	25	September 25, 2014	May 14, 2015	Bill Harper & Stacy McKee[6]
		12	24	September 24, 2015	May 19, 2016
		13	TBA	September 22, 2016	TBA		Airing
Private Practice		1	9	September 26, 2007	December 7, 2007	Shonda Rhimes	Released
		2	22	October 1, 2008	April 30, 2009
		3	23	October 1, 2009	May 13, 2010
		4	22	September 23, 2010	May 19, 2011	Craig Turk & Steve Blackman
		5	22	September 29, 2011	May 15, 2012
		6	13	September 25, 2012	January 22, 2013
Off the Map		1	13	January 12, 2011	April 6, 2011	Jenna Bans	Released
Scandal		1	7	April 5, 2012	May 17, 2012	Shonda Rhimes	Released
		2	22	September 27, 2012	May 16, 2013
		3	18	October 3, 2013	April 17, 2014
		4	22	September 25, 2014	May 14, 2015
		5	21	September 24, 2015	May 12, 2016
		6	16[7]	January 19, 2017	TBA		In Development[8]
How to Get Away with Murder		1	15	September 25, 2014	February 26, 2015	Peter Nowalk	Released
		2	15	September 24, 2015	March 17, 2016
		3	15	September 22, 2016	TBA		Airing
The Catch		1	10	March 24, 2016	May 19, 2016	Allan Heinberg	Released
		2	TBA	March 2, 2017	TBA		In Development [9]
Still Star-Crossed		1	TBA	TBA	TBA	Heather Mitchell	In Development [9]

Grey's Anatomy (2005–present)

The series follows Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), the daughter of an esteemed general surgeon named Ellis Grey, following her acceptance onto the residency program at the fictional Seattle Grace Hospital. During her tenure as a resident, Grey works alongside fellow doctors Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh), Alex Karev (Justin Chambers), Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl), and George O'Malley (T. R. Knight), who each struggle to balance their personal lives with the hectic work and training schedules assigned to them. They are overseen during their internship by Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson), a senior resident who works beneath Grey's love-interest Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey), the head of neurosurgery; Yang's fiancee Preston Burke (Isaiah Washington), the head of cardio; and Ellis Grey's ex-lover Richard Webber (James Pickens, Jr.), the Chief of Surgery. The residents are later joined by Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) and April Kepner (Sarah Drew), former Mercy-West residents who join Seattle Grace following an administrative merger in the sixth season. Throughout the first six seasons O'Malley, Burke and Stevens all depart the series which has become very controversial in the media over the life-span of the series. In addition to Shepherd, Webber, and Burke, the surgical wing is primarily supervised by Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd), as head of trauma; Arizona Robbins (Jessica Capshaw), as head of pediatric surgery; Callie Torres (Sara Ramirez), a resident who later becomes head of orthopedics; Erica Hahn (Brooke Smith), as head of cardio; Mark Sloan (Eric Dane), as head of plastics; Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh), as head of OB/GYN, neonatal, and fetal surgery; Teddy Altman (Kim Raver), as head of cardio; and Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone), Derek's sister who is hired to replace him as head of neuro. Derek is killed in the series' eleventh season.

Later additions to the residency program include Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh), Meredith's half-sister. Grey is killed alongside Mark Sloan in the season eight finale; Stephanie Edwards (Jerrika Hinton); Leah Murphy (Tessa Ferrer); Shane Ross (Gaius Charles), who departs alongside Yang in the tenth season finale; Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington), a doctor who begins a romantic relationship with Karev; Andrew Deluca (Giacomo Gianniotti), the love-interest of Meredith's half sister Maggie Pierce (Kelly McCreary), who also serves as head of cardio; and Benjamin Warren (Jason George), an anesthesiologist who has to balance his wife Miranda Bailey's new role as Chief of Surgery with his own desire to succeed. Season twelve sees the arrival of Nathan Riggs (Martin Henderson), while Meredith appointed head of general surgery - a post previously held by her mother.

Private Practice (2007–13)

The series is an American medical drama television series which aired on ABC from September 26, 2007, to January 22, 2013. A spin-off of Grey's Anatomy, the series takes place at Seaside Wellness Center (formerly Oceanside Health & Wellness Group) and chronicles the life of Dr. Addison Montgomery, played by Kate Walsh, as she leaves Seattle Grace Hospital in order to join a private practice, located in Los Angeles. Private Practice also revolves around Addison's co-workers at Seaside Wellness Center, and how they deal with patients, and the practice while still finding time to live their everyday lives. The first season deals with Addison's move from Seattle to Los Angeles and her attempts to adjust to a very different type of working environment at Oceanside Wellness Group, a co-op private practice. The first season also deals with her budding relationships with her new co-workers. Among them include her best friend Naomi Bennett, a fertility specialist, and Naomi's ex-husband Sam Bennett, who specializes in internal medicine. Also working within the practice is psychiatrist Violet Turner, pediatrician Cooper Freedman, alternative medicine specialist Pete Wilder, and receptionist Dell Parker. It is revealed early on that the Bennetts established the practice with the rest of the doctors owning a share of it as well. Charlotte King, who serves as chief of staff at St. Ambrose Hospital, works with Oceanside Wellness through her dealings with Sam and her sexual relationship with Cooper.

Off the Map (2011)

The series is set in a remote South American village, where six doctors search for the reasons that brought each of them to medicine. Lily Brenner, Tommy Fuller and Mina Minard are all running away from their lives when they find themselves practicing medicine in paradise. Paradise simply happens to be the most challenging place to practice medicine in the world. Ben Keeton, the youngest ever Chief of Surgery at UCLA and founder of the clinic, acts as their guide and mentor in a world of dangers alongside his trusted colleagues; Otis Cole, Zita Alareina Toledo Alvarez or "Zee" for short and the mysterious Ryan Clark. They also meet Charlie, a 14-year-old boy who works at the clinic as a translator and other things who has an instant connection with Tommy. Lily challenges herself to save a man from death on a zip line. Tommy's willingness to concede finds him at odds with Cole and almost costs him his place at the clinic. Mina almost loses a patient because she fails to recognize the simplest diagnosis. It's a rough beginning but they've made it through.

Scandal (2012–present)

Olivia Pope (Kerry Washington) is a former White House Communications Director for the President of the United States who has left to run her own crisis management firm, Olivia Pope & Associates, dedicating her life to protecting the public images of the nation's elite, but struggles with leaving her past relationship with the President, Fitzgerald Grant III (Tony Goldwyn) behind, which leads to a complicated relationship with the First Lady, Mellie Grant (Bellamy Young). Further complication ensues when former Navy Seal and coworker to the president Jake Ballard (Scott Foley) begins a relationship with Olivia. Olivia and her team of "gladiators", including former CIA operative Huck Finn (Guillermo Diaz), professional hacker Quinn Perkins (Katie Lowes), identity politics expert Marcus Walker (Cornelius Smith Jr.), Press Liaison to the White House, Abby Whelan (Darby Stanchfield), Attorney General of the United States, David Rosen (Josh Malina), and White House Chief of Staff, Cyrus Beene (Jeff Perry), all work to ensure President Grant remains in power, and give the Grant Administration an admirable legacy against the attacks of a vindictive and ambitious Mellie Grant and the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee, Elizabeth North (Portia de Rossi). Former OPA workers include former Wall Street banker Harrison Wright (Columbus Short) and Russian oligarchy operative Steven Finch (Henry Ian Cusick).

How to Get Away with Murder (2014–present)

Annalise Keating is a prominent criminal defense attorney and a law professor at Middleton University in Philadelphia. She selects five students to intern at her firm: Wes Gibbins, Connor Walsh, Michaela Pratt, Asher Millstone, and Laurel Castillo. They work with Annalise's employees, Frank Delfino and Bonnie Winterbottom, an associate lawyer. As Season 1 introduces occasional clients for Keating, it explores two related murders through both flashback and flashforward sequences: Lila Stangard, mistress of Annalise's husband Sam Keating and a student at Middleton; and then Sam Keating at the hands of Annalise's interns.

The first nine episodes alternate between the present-day timeline in medias res, depicting Wes, Connor, Michaela, and Laurel covering up Sam's murder by disposing of his body, and the flashbacks detailing the course of events leading up to Sam's death: Annalise becomes involved in the Lila Stangard investigation at Wes' urging, leading her to discover Sam's affair and creating suspicion that he killed Lila. The final six episodes explore Annalise's attempt to help her interns cover up Sam's murder and legally implicate Sam in Lila's death, and flashbacks to Lila's final moments before her murder.

The Catch (2016–present)

The series is an American crime drama television series starring Mireille Enos and Peter Krause. It follows Alice Vaughan (Enos), a private investigator from Los Angeles, California, who is the victim of fraud by her fiancé. She is determined to find him—between working on other cases—before it ruins her career.^[10] Peter Krause plays her fiancé, Benjamin Jones, while Sonya Walger, Rose Rollins, Elvy Yost, Jay Hayden, Jacky Ido, and Alimi Ballard also co-star.

Still Star-Crossed (Coming 2017)

Still Star-Crossed is an upcoming American period drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes and based on the book with same name by Melinda Taub. The series produced by Shonda Rhimes' ShondaLand and ABC Studios, and set to premiere on ABC in 2017.

References

1. Lebeau, Jordan (September 22, 2014). "The Angry Black Women of ShondaLand: What The New York Times (and Slate) Got Wrong". Boston.com. Retrieved September 23, 2014.
2. Abrams, Natalie (21 August 2014). "See how ABC is promoting Shonda Rhimes' Thursday takeover". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
3. McFarland, Melanie. "On TV: Thursday night throwdown". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
4. Moore, Frazier. "Shonda Rhimes Lays Claim To Thursday Nights On ABC". Associated Press. Retrieved September 28, 2014.
5. http://www.wetpaint.com/season-10-showrunners-exiting-600828/
6. http://deadline.com/2016/03/greys-anatomy-showrunners-bill-harper-stacy-mckee-abc-studios-deals-1201720891/
7. Ausiello, Michael (May 2, 2016). "Scandal Season 6 Episode Order Cut". TVLine. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
8. Abrams, Natalie (March 3, 2016). "Grey's Anatomy, Quantico, and more renewed at ABC". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
9. Mitcovick, Matt Webb (May 12, 2016). "The Catch Renewed for Season 2, ABC Orders Shondaland's Romeo & Juliet Sequel Still Star-Crossed to Series". TVLine. Retrieved May 12, 2016.
10. Lesley Goldberg. "Peter Krause Set as New Male Lead in ABC's Shondaland Drama 'The Catch'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 14 July 2015.