“I feel like when the Emmys come around, he will be immortalized the way he should be," Rhimes told 'ET'
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NEED TO KNOW
- Shonda Rhimes addressed Eric Dane’s omission from the Oscars’ In Memoriam, noting that “Eric was unique to television,” and that he was “not a movie star”
- Rhimes expressed hope that the Emmys will honor Dane appropriately, calling him an incredible and unique individual
- Dane, best known as Dr. Mark Sloan on Grey’s Anatomy, was remembered with a tribute montage on the long-running ABC series in February
Shonda Rhimes is speaking out about the late Eric Dane's omission from the In Memoriam tribute at the 2026 Oscars.
Rhimes was asked about the omission following the Sunday, March 15, event while attending Vanity Fair's Oscar Party.
“Well, he’s not a movie star," the Grey’s Anatomy showrunner, 56, told ET.
Credit: Michael Tullberg/Getty
“I feel like when the Emmys come around, he will be immortalized the way he should be," she added. "You can’t fault the Oscars for the fact they’re looking at movies, and there were so many people who are lost. Eric was unique to television and I can’t wait to see what they (Emmys) do with him."
The ceremony's In Memoriam montage included a dedication from Billy Crystal to Rob Reiner and Michelle Singer Reiner, followed by a joint appearance by many stars from Reiner's films. A speech by Rachel McAdams about Diane Keaton and Catherine O'Hara, and a musical moment that Barbra Streisand dedicated to Robert Redford were also included in the moment at Sunday's ceremony.
While Dane, who died at the age of 53 on Feb. 19, had movie credits to his name including 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand and 2008's Marley & Me, his rise to stardom came through his role as Dr. Mark Sloan, a.k.a. McSteamy, in Grey’s Anatomy.
The show paid tribute to him by airing a 60-second montage at the conclusion of the Feb. 26 episode.
Credit: Momodu Mansaray/Getty
When asked if she wanted to share anything about Dane, Rhimes told ET that he "was an incredible human being, and I still say is because it's very hard for me to believe he's gone."
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"He was an incredible human being and he was a huge loss for us," she continued. "He was a huge loss for the Shondaland family, for the Grey's Anatomy family, and honestly, the people that he knew, he was just a wonderful, wonderful, giving guy that I don't know that everybody understands how amazing he was."
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