Ellen Pompeo joined Grey’s Anatomy as Dr. Meredith Grey at age 36. By the time she booked the role, the Boston native already had several life experiences. Additionally, Pompeo found her real-life “McDreamy” in Chris Ivery before becoming famous.
Although Pompeo has shared how different she is from Meredith in the past, the actor’s wedding to Ivery came right out of the surgeon’s playbook.
Who is ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ star Ellen Pompeo’s husband?
Pompeo spent her childhood in Everett, Massachusetts. The actor’s husband was also raised in Massachusetts. However, the pair didn’t meet each other until 2003 at a grocery store. Years later, they connected in Los Angeles where Pompeo was chasing her acting dreams. Ivery also had an interest in the entertainment industry and wrote for artists such as Rihanna.
After leaving a criminal past behind, Pompeo and Ivery’s lives changed when she booked Grey’s Anatomy. Once the show premiered in March 2005, fans couldn’t get enough of the actor and the rest of the cast.
Soon, many viewers wanted to know more about Pompeo’s love life. In an interview with People, she explained she believes she and Ivery are “meant to be.” Also, Pompeo hinted that she could clandestinely marry her soulmate one day.
“We were six degrees our whole lives, so I feel like we were sort of meant to be,” she said. We’ll get married eventually, secretly.”
Ellen Pompeo and Meredith Grey had similar weddings
Shortly after her People interview, Pompeo and Ivery married. The couple’s nuptials took place at New York City Hall. Mayor Michael Bloomberg officiated the wedding while the pair exchanged vows. However, Pompeo said no one knew about her big day or the fact that Ivery proposed.
“We flew out on a redeye Thursday night,” she explained to Ryan Seacrest and Kelly Ripa. “Friday morning, we woke up, went to City Hall, had the wedding really quick, and then we went to Lupa for lunch after. We had the whole weekend and no one knew, so we had that to ourselves.”
Following their city hall wedding, Pompeo and Ivery eventually told their families they were married. Meredith made a similar move on Grey’s Anatomy during her relationship with Dr. Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey). During their courtship, Derek proposed to Meredith in their hospital’s elevator. However, the pair never had a wedding due to their demanding schedules. In season 5, Meredith and Derek exchanged vows on a post-it note. Later, in season 8, they officiated their marriage at City Hall to adopt their daughter, Zola.
How long has the ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ star been married?
Pompeo and Ivery are still married years after their intimate wedding. In 2009, the Grey’s Anatomy star and her hubby welcomed Stella Luna Ivery into the world. Since their daughter’s birth, the couple has had two more children- Sienna May and Eli Christopher.
This year, Ivery and Pompeo celebrated 14 years of marriage. During a 2018 appearance on In Case You Missed Us, the actor explained how she and her husband stayed together for over a decade.
“Just don’t try to change people,” Pompeo said. “They are who they are, and they were fine when you married them, so don’t expect them to change.”
