Harry Shum Jr. is not choosing between Grey Sloan Memorial and the ballroom just yet. For now, he is doing both.
The actor’s casting on season 35 of Dancing With the Stars raised questions about his future on Grey’s Anatomy, particularly after Dr. Benson “Blue” Kwan was fired at the end of season 22. Asked where that leaves his character, Shum told Entertainment Weekly, “I don’t know. We’re trying to work it out.”
Shum has confirmed that he is actively filming Grey’s Anatomy while preparing for DWTS. His current schedule includes early days on the medical drama followed by dance rehearsals, so Blue will appear again when the ABC series returns for season 23.
Shum has not revealed how Blue returns after losing his job. The character could find his way back onto the Grey Sloan staff, remain involved with his former colleagues without being rehired, or appear as the show deals with the consequences of his season 22 firing.
Shum Is Already Back at Work on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’
View this post on Instagram
Shum described his current routine after the DWTS cast announcement. “I have early days, finish filming [and] go straight to rehearsals and then rinse and repeat,” he said, according to Us Weekly. Shum said he was not complaining about the workload and called the opportunity a dream come true.
His involvement in season 23 was already visible before his ballroom casting became public. Grey’s Anatomy included Shum in its first season 23 cast photo in July, and later behind the scenes footage from the show’s official account showed Blue with his fellow doctors despite his dismissal from Grey Sloan. The production material did not explain what brings him back into their orbit.
Shum has played Blue since season 19, when Grey’s Anatomy introduced a new group of surgical residents. He arrived alongside Simone Griffith, Jules Millin, Lucas Adams and Mika Yasuda and became part of the show’s younger generation of doctors. Blue’s story has included his competitive personality, his relationship with Jules and details about the life he had before joining Grey Sloan.
Blue’s Firing Still Has to Be Explained
View this post on Instagram
Season 22 left Blue without a job at the hospital. Richard Webber fired him after learning that Blue had secretly given a patient an experimental treatment that did not have FDA approval. Miranda Bailey had initially taken responsibility for what happened before Richard discovered Blue was responsible.
Shum was unsure about the character’s future when he discussed the storyline in May. He said he did not know what the writers had planned and acknowledged that Grey’s Anatomy has a long history of bringing characters back after professional setbacks. His more recent comments have not confirmed that Blue has been rehired.
“A lot of people have been fired on the show,” Shum told Entertainment Weekly while discussing what could happen next. His current filming proves that Blue remains part of season 23, but neither Shum nor ABC has explained his employment status at Grey Sloan or how his firing will affect his storyline when the series returns.
Shum Is Balancing Grey Sloan With the ‘DWTS’ Ballroom
Shum will compete with two-time Mirrorball champion Jenna Johnson on season 35 of Dancing With the Stars. His casting quickly drew attention to his previous dance experience. Before his years on Grey’s Anatomy, Shum played Mike Chang on Glee, appeared in the Step Up films and worked professionally as a dancer.
He has pushed back on the assumption that those credits make ballroom dancing easy. Shum told Us Weekly that ballroom and Latin styles require different technique and body positioning from the dancing he performed earlier in his career. He said even short rehearsals can be physically demanding, while Johnson has been correcting details as specific as the position of his shoulders.
The two shows will overlap during the fall television season. ABC’s official cast announcement pairs Shum with Johnson and identifies him as a Grey’s Anatomy star. Dancing With the Stars begins its two-night premiere on September 15 and 16, while Grey’s Anatomy season 23 premieres October 15.
Shum will therefore be rehearsing and competing on DWTS while his latest work as Blue begins reaching viewers. His return to the medical drama is no longer in doubt. Whether Blue is once again allowed to practice medicine at Grey Sloan remains unresolved.