The actor played Dr. DeLuca for seven seasons on the Shondaland medical drama.
Warning: This post contains spoilers about the March 11 episode ofGrey’s Anatomy, “Helplessly Hoping.”
Dr. DeLuca has left the building.
Giacomo Gianniotti in ‘Grey’s Anatomy’.Ron Batzdorff/ABC
Yup, it was teary stuff.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How has the reaction been since last night’s episode aired?
GIACOMO GIANNIOTTI:It was pretty overwhelming.
I will say I have definitely felt the love.
How did she break it to you, and how did you feel about it when you first heard?
We sat down and we talked, and they were noticeably different.
They were a little emotional.
I said, “What’s going on, guys?”
They proceeded to tell me the story.
Krista said, “As the storyteller I have to tell the story.
I just thought they checked all the boxes.
Seeing everybody’s reaction to the episode last night, I think we did a great job.
Yeah, using his departure to raise awareness for sex trafficking was a cool move.
I had said to Krista that that was very vital to me, and she totally agreed.
I was very grateful that that’s not where the story line was going.
And they were like, “No, no, no, no.
We totally agree it can’t be that.
It has to be totally natural circumstances.”
So he wasn’t doing anything out of character.
It didn’t feel forced.
It was totally DeLuca.
How was the table read of the episode?
Was everyone pretty emotional?
I don’t think people were really told before, so it was sort of a surprise to everyone.
Because as we find out, we don’t know what happens until the very end.
So everyone was on the edge of their seats, wanting the answer.
What was it like when you came to shoot it?
Was it a tough last day on set?
I think my last stuff, if I’m remembering it correctly, was my stuff in the OR.
Strangely enough, DeLuca’s end was my end too.
I got to spend a lot of time with Kevin McKidd and Kim Raver, who were my surgeons.
I love them both very much.
They were very great surgeons, but maybe not on that day.
Maybe it’s them I should be mad at, not the writers.
How long did you have to lie there covered in fake blood with a tube in your mouth?
It’s different parts, an hour here and then a break and then an hour there.
It comes in waves.
You’ve also directed an upcoming episode.
Did that make it a little easier to end DeLuca’s arc?
Directing is just an honor.
It was just a really nice serendipitous coincidence that directing gave me that opportunity.
How did you directing an episode come about?
Was it something you’d flagged interest in a while back?
I immediately saw, “Oh wow, Kevin is directing.”
I had always wanted to do that, but I always felt like it was like a pipe dream.
I was directing short films and music videos, because a lot of my friends are musicians.
As our executive producer, she manages a lot of the directing on the show.
I just said, “I want to direct.
I’ve been working as a director for a long time, studying that art form.
I’d love to dive deeper into it on television.”
Next year, I’m going to give you an episode.
Let’s see what you got.”
I was very honored.
That was all before we knew that I was going to leave the show.
I cannot wait for you guys to see it.
I’m editing it right now.
I had front-row seats at the best film school you could ever go to.
DeLuca ends up on Meredith’s beach in this episode.
How was shooting those scenes?
The “I had plans” line when the tide was coming in was pretty heartbreaking.
It was a very, very real moment for me also.
Come on, he could wake up.
He could still make it."
It added so much, he gave so much to the fans.
We had a lot of times to reminisce.
In the end, there’s nothing really I would’ve changed or wanted more of.
What will you miss most about playing DeLuca?
I just think he was such a beautifully complicated guy.
Playing those things together was a real joy.
That’s what we do.
It’s all for those little moments.
Is there any hope we might see DeLuca again at some point?
In a dream sequence or on the beach again or anything?
There’s that veryGrey’s Anatomyshowing of a lost character.
