Courtesy ABC
Courtesy ABC
Courtesy ABC
Courtesy ABC
Courtesy ABC
Fill 1
Fill 1
May 12, 2016
Online Originals

A Man Of Integrity

Jason George has captivated audiences this season as the risk-taking Dr. Ben on the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy, and he says the integrity of his character inspires him to remain a humble co-star and grounded family man.

Ny MaGee

“Ben is an honest guy and a man of integrity. I try to be that in my own life.”

Jason George plays Dr. Miranda Bailey's (Chandra Wilson) anesthesiologist-turned-surgeon husband on Grey’s Anatomy, now in its 12th season. The gig has put the actor of both stage and screen in the unique position of juggling three “wives” — his real-life wife, his TV wife, and the one calling the shots on the set, series creator Shonda Rhimes.

The happily married father of three says his moral principles keep his wife of over a decade secure in knowing that despite the strong female reaction to his presence on the series, he will  always come home to her.

“One of the reasons why she’s my wife is because she is thoroughly unimpressed with any levels of celebrity. We’ve been together since college. She knew me before I even knew I wanted to be an actor. I have the luxury of knowing that she fell in love with me, and she’s been a guiding force in my life.

She is very comfortable in knowing that I go to work and do my thing, and then I come home and I throw kids around and then lay up in the bed next to her. That’s going to happen daily. She’s seen me hugging on a lot of different women on camera and she knows that I’m always coming home.”

Being married to your boss can be complicated and uncompromising, and fans of George’s onscreen marriage are concerned about the rocky road ahead for that couple.

Dr. Ben was recently given a six-month suspension through Dr. Bailey after his tragic operation on a pregnant patient. Ben later learns that his wife, who is also the chief of the hospital, would’ve fired him if given the chance. Suffice it to say, the tension between the couple is “not good for the bedroom,” said George.

Viewers have been left wondering if Dr. Ben will return to the surgery residency program after the suspension.

“That’s the question and the reality of his whole issue. A six month suspension for a surgical resident is basically, in the real world, that would be like saying,‘OK, but you can’t finish the last two years of college. Hang it up. You will never graduate.’ His coming back as an anesthesiologist is a way for him to continue to learn and stay in the OR and try keep current, even if he can’t actually get his hands in there.”

George admits that his character does not feel the least bit threatened or intimated by Dr. Bailey, and he uses one of the most influential, real-life power-couples as inspiration on how to handle the dynamic with his play wife.

“I remember years ago I co-hosted the daytime Emmys and had the opportunity to very briefly meet Oprah and Stedman, and I saw how unfazed he was by all of the commotion that surrounds her non-stop. He just seemed so confident in and of himself, and I would always reference that in my mind when I would think about how Ben handles the situation.

"Ben believed in Miranda becoming the chief more than she did. He believed in her when she didn’t believe in herself, and pushed her and she got there. He’s all good with her earning more money. He took a pay cut to go from being a doctor to a student again. Her earning more doesn’t make him less capable.”

George believes that a “really interesting storyline to pursue” down the line, and one which he has “thrown out to the writers,” would be Dr. Ben and Dr. Bailey having kids together.

The fate of his fictional marital life remains to be seen. In the meantime, the Emmy-nominated star would like to go back and get his pilot’s license now that his own kids are getting older.

“I have about 20 hours towards my pilot’s license and was about to do my first solo and finish up when we found out that my wife was pregnant with twins. And so as to not stress out the pregnant lady, I grounded myself, and have been for a little bit That said, they’re older now, so I’m getting the itch back. So if you hear a buzzing over your rooftop, it may be me sometime soon.”

George's breakout performance was as Dominic on ABC's Mistresses, and viewers may also recognize him from his Emmy nominated role as Michael Bourne on the NBC daytime soap opera Sunset Beach.

The classically trained theater actor recently starred in the well-received controversial play, 12 Angry Men, which won the NAACP Theater Award for Best Production. Additionally, he was set to co-star alongside Halle Berry in her upcoming thriller Kidnap, but his scenes ended up on the cutting room floor.

“The film almost happens in realtime, and so everything with my character was in flashbacks. Given that, I knew there was a possibility that my character would hit the cutting room floor. She shot me a really sweet email saying that this just gives us an opportunity to do more work together.”

Last year, George was upgraded to series regular on Grey’s Anatomy, and collaborating with his castmates and teasing creator Shonda Rhimes have been the most enjoyable aspects of his job.

“The thing that excites me on every set is the collaboration with the people. I was a fan of the show before I was ever on it. I was loving Shonda Rhimes’s work long before I ever worked with Shonda Rhimes.

"So when I actually ended up on set with her, it was one of the moments where you think to yourself, ‘You gotta put on your big boy acting pants and don’t screw this up,'” George confessed. “The story-lines we’ve had of late have pushed us to places we haven’t had to go. So that’s been even more fun than it has been before.”

George and Rhimes have what he describes as a “natural banter,” which he attributes to “kind of just who we are as people.” It’s a playful relationship that amuses the cast, who view them as “an old married couple.”

“I tease her and she gives it back to me,” said George.

“Lately, we’ve had to go to places that are much darker and much more interesting and push each other in ways, that, for me, is the juice every time I’m on set.”

ABC has renewed Grey’s Anatomy for another season, and the veteran stars of the series recently entered into contract negotiations. George confirms that fans can expect to see more of Dr. Ben next season, and he’ll be stepping behind the lens for a personal passion project —  a documentary that explores a “new way to look at issues of race and religion and country of origin.”

George will also be “poppin’ back through” the set of Mistresses. “They asked me to come back and play in their sandbox for a minute. So I’ll do that,” he revealed.

As far as teasing a little of what Rhimes has planned for the upcoming series finale, George said simply that the episode “is quintessential” Grey’s Anatomy.

“Shonda has ninjas that actually descend from the sky to take you down if you give up too much. I will say this, the table reads are such a joy because it gets everybody in the same room at the same time; writers, crew, and all the cast. Sometimes you’ll go weeks without seeing other people on set because your storylines aren’t intercepting. But everybody shows up to the table read.

We read the script and that’s when we get to be just fans of the show and experience the show as close as we can the way the fans experience it on Thursday nights. Well, we did the table read for the finale, and at the end of it, everyone was just looking at each other and said, ‘I love doing this show.’ It’s an outstanding episode.”


The Grey's Anatomy season finale airs May 19 on ABC.

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