Grey’s Anatomy: 10 Friendships That Should Have Happened But Never Did

The hit ABC medical drama Grey’s Anatomy has always prided itself on delivering the perfect mix of love, longing, loss, pain, and death. Over the years, several amazing friendships have formed between the characters.

From the touching bond of team M.A.G.I.C. to other lovable friendships, such as that between April and Arizona or Miranda and Richard, the series has shown how navigating complex human relationships is a part and parcel of daily life. However, that’s not to say these were the best friendships. There were quite a few relationships that went largely ignored. In fact, there were several potential friendships the writers built up but never gave as much screen time to compared to the others. Just take a look at these examples…

10 Callie & Addison

Calliope Torres and Addison Montgomery were fan-favorites and both actors carved a niche for themselves on popular television with their beloved roles.

Callie and Addison were shown to be on the verge of a beautiful friendship while going through challenges in their personal lives. Although their growing friendship was nipped at the bud as Addison left Seattle for good, this pairing could have, in time, become another set of ‘twisted sisters’ like Cristina and Meredith.

9 Owen & Meredith

Owen Hunt was Cristina’s love interest for a long while and even ended up marrying her in season 7. The unfortunate thing was that Owen never became particularly friendly with Meredith who was his wife’s best friend.

In fact, for some time Meredith wasn’t on board with Cristina marrying Owen and her relationship with the trauma surgeon wasn’t particularly smooth. In time, the two of them have become colleagues who respect one another but have never really been friends as such. However, as veterans of Grey Sloan, nothing would make more sense than for these two to be good friends.

8 Cristina & Callie

Cristina Yang was one of the most beloved characters on Grey’s as was the sprightly Callie Torres. Cristina was of course Meredith’s best friend, but there was a brief period of time when Callie shared rooms with Cristina after both had broken up with their respective significant others.

Callie and Cristina were on friendly terms but their relationship never culminated into one where they would confide in each other like good friends usually do. Of course, Cristina was never very attached with anyone other than Meredith but she and Callie would have made a great empowered duo, with both having such strong, quirky personalities.

7 Arizona & Teddy

When Teddy Altman joined Seattle Grace, she was at a loose end with no real friends. The only person she knew was Owen who chose Cristina over her. But some efforts were made by the likes of Arizona Robbins to make her feel welcome and comfortable.

Arizona, adorably, asked Teddy to join her, Callie, and Bailey for a girls’ night. While none of the others particularly wanted to spend time getting to know their new colleague, they tried to be gracious nonetheless. Arizona also offered Teddy advice from time to time, such as hooking up with Mark Sloan to take her mind off Owen. The two would have made good friends and could have even become a great couple if Arizona hadn’t left.

6 Cristina & Stephanie

Cristina Yang was no easy person to make friends with and definitely not when it came to interns or surgical residents who she couldn’t care less about.

But there was one resident, Stephanie Edwards, who had something of the makings of another Cristina in her. She was smart, competitive, and driven. In fact, she could have, in time, gone on to become a second Cristina Yang of sorts, although more emotionally connected and less mechanical. A friendship between these two would have made all the sense in the world.

5 April & Lexie

April Kepner was one of those people who was good through and through, albeit a bit annoying at times, and Lexie Grey was possibly the sweetest, most gentle character the show’s ever had.

These two women could easily have been friends, making each other stronger. In contrast to the twisted sisters, Cristina and Meredith, April and Lexie could have been something like the good sisters, helping people and fighting all the meanness directed their way together.

4 Maggie & Derek

Two other people who would have made good friends were Maggie Pierce and her brother-in-law, Derek Shepherd.

In fact, when Maggie felt lost initially after she first joined the hospital, and Meredith was giving her the cold-shoulder, it was Derek who made efforts to make Maggie feel more at home. He even invited her home for dinner, trying to patch things up between Maggie, Meredith, and Richard. Had Derek lived, his cute camaraderie with his young sister-in-law would have been something to watch out for.

3 Bailey & Derek

Another person who could have made a good friend for Derek was Bailey. Derek was shown to be on friendly terms with Burke and Webber, but he was also cordial with Bailey, who opened up to him about her past.

In fact, fans might recall a cute moment way back in season 4, when Derek and Miranda told each other about their respective history as teenagers. They found out that they were both in the high school band, and were, for the most part, lonely adolescents. Moreover, throughout Derek’s time in Grey Sloan Memorial, he and Miranda often acted as each other’s conscience, offering valuable advice, albeit in an off-hand manner. Although they never properly acknowledged it, these two could have been loyal friends in time.

2 Bailey & Koracick

Tom Koracick has been a polarising character from the start when he was introduced as Amelia’s mentor and friend. He has a snarky sense of humor and is self-aggrandizing. However, the viewers know he has a softer side to him after learning of his profoundly tragic past.

One of those aware that Tom lost his only son is Bailey. Bailey started out by hating Tom but gradually learned to respect him grudgingly once she found out about his past. With both being strong personalities, the two would always be at loggerheads but can also be seen supporting one another in spite of disagreements. If Tom manages to recover from the Covid, the Bailey-Koracick friendship might be something to think of.

1 Richard & Alex

This might seem like an unlikely friendship but Alex Karev did respect Richard. When he initially joined the hospital as an arrogant surgical intern, Richard was one of the people who could keep Alex mellowed for all his insolent ways.

The two even shared some hilarious moments when Richard decided to help Alex give Jo Wilson’s date, Jason, a hard time by teasing and humiliating him relentlessly. Alex also turned to Richard for advice more than once and asked him to take over as interim chief at Pacific-North Hospital when he was away. Let’s not forget that Richard was also one of the few people Alex wrote to say goodbye to when he left abruptly in season 16. There was a strong bond here that went under the radar.

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