Showrunner Transcript: Shonda Rhimes (“Grey’s Anatomy”)

In conjunction with the annual broadcast network upfronts, New York magazine is running a series called “Showrunner Transcripts.” We will feature one each day for the next two weeks on GITS.

What’s a showrunner? For a primer, you can go here to Wikipedia. The short answer: “The person who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of a television series.” It’s more than just managing a series. Someone has to guarantee to a network they can deliver 12, 22, or however many episodes for which the series is contracted. That’s the bottom line of a showrunner’s reality.

Today: Shonda Rhimes (“Grey’s Anatomy,” “Private Practice,” “Damage Control”)

Do you watch a lot of TV still, or does working on a show kill it for you?

Having a television show makes me want to talk about television so much less, so much less than you ever imagined you would. But I still watch a surprising amount of television. I watch a lot of comedies. I watch things that are different than what I do, like Dexter. I just saw The Killing, which I thought was really, really interesting. I watch 30 Rock and Community and Cougar Town. There’s not a lot else. Right now I feel like we’re going through a really interesting rebirth in television drama, so I’m interested to see where we go next.

What do you mean?

It feels like there have been a couple of seasons of network television where everything’s fallen into the toilet. Now we’re about to hit a phase where I feel like everyone will stop trying to remake the stuff that they’ve already made and make something that feels fresh and feels new.

For more of the feature, go here.