derek shepherd died in grey's anatomy in the 11th season.
what season did derek shepherd die in grey's anatomy?
11th season
on august 13, 2013, sandra oh revealed that she would be leaving after season 10 of "grey's anatomy", making the eleventh season the first season in which dr. cristina yang did not appear. it was announced on march 25, 2014 that gaius charles and tessa ferrer did not receive a contract renewal for the eleventh season, and left at the end of the tenth season. jerrika hinton and camilla luddington however, returned as residents for the eleventh season. on january 23, 2014 it was reported that ellen pompeo and patrick dempsey had renewed their contracts for another two seasons, as drs. meredith grey and derek shepherd, respectively, meaning their characters would be staying on the medical drama for seasons 11 and 12. on may 2, 2014, the rest of the six original cast mates, justin chambers, chandra wilson and james pickens jr., excluding sandra oh, renewed their contracts for another two seasons (11 and 12) as drs. alex karev, miranda bailey, and richard webber, respectively. sara ramirez also renewed her contract for another two seasons as dr. callie torres.
grey's anatomy (season 11)
on january 23, 2014 it was reported that ellen pompeo and patrick dempsey had renewed their contracts for another two seasons, as drs. meredith grey and derek shepherd, respectively, meaning their characters would be staying on the medical drama for seasons 11 and 12. on april 24, 2015, patrick dempsey revealed that he would be leaving "grey's anatomy" after the eleventh season despite having a contract through another season. thus, this will be the first season in which dr. derek shepherd, portrayed by patrick dempsey, is not included in the main cast of characters. dempsey's character dr. derek shepherd was killed off towards the end of the eleventh season in the episode "how to save a life", meaning he will not return for the twelfth season as previously thought. abc put out a statement claiming dempsey wanted to pursue other interests.
grey's anatomy (season 12)