The Oscars Ignored Eric Dane in the In Memoriam — Shonda Rhimes' Defense Is Complicated

The 2026 Oscars left Grey's Anatomy star Eric Dane out of the In Memoriam segment. Shonda Rhimes defended the decision. Here is why this omission is generating so much anger.

The 2026 Academy Awards — held on March 15, with the specific In Memoriam segment that honours the industry professionals who died in the previous year — omitted Grey's Anatomy actor Eric Dane, who died in 2025, from the memorial montage. The specific response from Shonda Rhimes — the showrunner who created Grey's Anatomy and who arguably owes more of her specific commercial success to Dane's portrayal of Dr. Mark Sloan than almost any other cast member — is generating the specific controversy whose resolution depends on whether the Academy's specific criteria for In Memoriam inclusion are defensible.

Rhimes told Entertainment Tonight at the Vanity Fair after-party: 'He's not a movie star, you know?' — the specific framing that places the In Memoriam omission in the context of the Academy's historical prioritisation of film actors over television actors, regardless of the specific cultural impact of the television work.

For the specific irony: Shonda Rhimes' production company, Shondaland, has produced primarily television content throughout her career. Her defence of an exclusion criterion that prioritises film over television applies specifically to the medium that made her wealthy and culturally relevant — a particular self-undermining argument whose specifics are generating the particular fan criticism that Greys and Scandal audiences are expressing.

For Eric Dane's specific cultural impact: McSteamy was one of the most popular characters in Grey's Anatomy's history, a show that was for several years among the most watched programmes on American network television. His specific combination of physical presence and comedic emotional depth created the particular audience connection that In Memoriam inclusions are meant to acknowledge.

For the Academy's specific criteria: the Oscars In Memoriam has always applied the particular film/television distinction whose specific contemporary relevance is increasingly contested as the industry's specific streaming transformation blurs the categories. The 2026 decision on Dane will likely accelerate the specific internal conversation about updating the criteria.