17 most hated Grey's Anatomy characters ever

There have been many characters on Grey’s Anatomy over the years. Some of them have become beloved, fan favorites. Others have been characters we would love to forget existed and never see again.

As the new season of Grey’s Anatomy has started, we’re taking a look at the most hated characters every to grace our screens. This is updated to the Season 21 premiere, but we won’t share any spoilers from that episode if you haven’t caught up. It’s only about the characters and how they became so hated.

Leah Murphy

Leah Murphy was one of the new interns who came in after MAGIC sat the boards and moved on up the career ladder. She immediately proved to be a problematic, showing that she didn’t really belong there. She used her connections with Mark Sloan to get into the program.

Then she became clingy after sleeping with Arizona. She made it clear that she wasn’t a capable doctor and didn’t belong in the role that she was in. Plus, Calzona fans were not happy that she helped in the downfall of the ship. Nobody minded when she left.

Penny Blake

In a way, Dr. Penny Blake is hated for the wrong reasons. She’s often blamed for Derek’s death, but it actually wasn’t her fault. She was an intern who wanted to do the right thing, but had a terrible attending. She became guilty by association, though.

So, when Penny came to Grey Sloan Memorial, she already had the issue of Meredith being against her. Then she started dating Callie, which meant Arizona didn’t like her. She tried to stick it out, but getting an offer across the country was definitely a better option in life.

Owen Hunt

I have a love-hate relationship with Owen Hunt. I loved his introduction. He came in with a military background, and all he wanted to do was help. The problem was that meant using what was available. However, he owned up to his lack of hospital knowledge and asked for help.

Things took a turn while he was with Cristina. He married her knowing she was going through a PTSD breakdown after the plane crash. He attempted to force her into having a baby. Then he cheated on her. He’s been in one messy relationship after another, and fans were quickly done with him. He is trying to redeem himself, but it’s too little, too late.

Teddy Altman

Teddy came in with a storyline that was sure to make her hated. She was interested in Owen when fans were still rooting for Owen and Cristina. However, she gave up on that after the shooting at the hospital, and she put her focus on her work and then on Henry.

It was after Henry’s death and her most recent return to the series that she became one of the most hated characters on Grey’s Anatomy. She started up an affair with Tom Koracick, breaking his heart and Owen’s heart at the same time. Plus, she manipulated the name of her daughter after a lover and not a friend from 9/11.

Sydney Heron

In Sydney’s defense, she’s not actually done anything wrong. It’s her personality that quickly made her one of the most hated characters. That personality is still there as she returns in Season 21.

Sydney’s bubbly personality is a trauma response. After losing a patient, she realized that she needed to put up a front. It was successful for her, even if absolutely everyone wants to avoid her as much as possible.

Nicole Baylow

We have to go back to when Bailey first started out at Grey Sloan Memorial as an intern. Her resident was Nicole Baylow, who wasn’t happy with the idea of Bailey being around. To be fair, Bailey was a shell of the woman she became in later years, and it was Nicole who helped Bailey learn to stand up for herself.

The part that fans hated was Nicole claiming something of Bailey’s as her own. She was quickly caught out, with Bailey proving to Webber that she was the intern to watch. Fortunately, that was all we had to experience of Nicole. I don’t think I could deal with her for a whole season!

Erica Hahn

At first, Erica Hahn just seemed like a strict teacher. She was exactly what Cristina Yang needed to turn her into a great cardiovascular surgeon. We even got a great storyline of her figuring out her sexuality later in life.

The problem was her strict teaching tended to make her an unlikeable character. Then she found out that Izzy, Cristina, and others were all part of the Denny situation and that the LVAD wire was cut. Naturally, she was still angry about the loss of her patient and realized that it could have all been avoided. Fans just couldn’t get behind her, though, and we were grateful when she left.

Paul Stark

There are a few characters who are a bit of an enigma. Paul Stark is one of them. He came in during the seventh season as the new Head of Peds when Arizona left initially. He quickly proved to be more of an antagonist on the screen, often putting patients in harm’s way and refusing to talk to parents about their children. Why did he go into peds?

Yet, he also had a moment where he showed potential redemption. He helped to encourage April to push for the position of Chief Resident, seeing the light in her skills. Stark just disappeared after that.

Tom Koracick

There are a few characters I’ve had a love-hate relationship with over the years. Tom Koracick is one of them. He can be so hot and cold, unable to put his personal feelings to one side, and that makes it hard to like and respect him all the time.

Yet, when people need him, he is there for them. He helped April without her asking for it. He was there for Teddy, although that turned into an affair. He even helped remove Amelia’s brain tumor without holding it over her—sure, he’s a doctor, but he can also be awful to those he thinks owes him favors. I do miss Koracick at times, but like it when he’s gone too. I think a lot of fans are like that.

Charles Percy

When Grey Sloan and Mercy West combined together, we met a new group of interns. Dr. Charles Percy was one who quickly rubbed everyone the wrong way. He thought he was the hot-shot, and he very quickly proved that wasn’t always the case.

Charles quickly proved that he would manipulate people for his own gain. We saw that with Izzy, when it looked like he was going to be friends with her, only for him to make fun of her and undermine her. That didn’t mean he deserved the death he got in the hospital shooting, but it’s really Bailey’s reaction that makes his death so heartbreaking.

Ellis Grey

It’s hard to say that Ellis Grey could be hated, but she is. She is a talented woman of her time. Due to the push of needing to prove herself, she had to shut down on some of her emotions. She was also overly focused on medicine, and she ended up being a terrible mother to Meredith.

On top of that, she was willing to have an affair. Not only was she willing to hurt Webber’s wife, Adele, she was also willing to hurt her own husband. And yes, she was even going to run away with Webber until he chose his wife. We would later find out that she gave up their child for adoption and never told him about her, making her even worse.

Thatcher Grey

Meredith’s father is also a terrible person. Meredith reminded Thatcher of Ellis so much that he gained a strong hatred for her. No parent should feel that for their child, and they should be able to separate all that.

Then he just completely cut Meredith out when Ellis was the one who took her to the other side of the country. Meredith had no idea about his second family until they needed medical care. Yet, Meredith still gave part of her liver for him, and he still wasn’t all that grateful.

Reed Adamson

We know that medicine is competitive. There’s nothing wrong with racing each other to the OR or to figuring out the right answer. That doesn’t mean you walk over people or manipulate situations to get what you want. Reed Adamson didn’t seem to get the memo. When April was originally fired, she soon realized that she didn’t have friends.

Was there a chance that Reed could have been redeemed? Possibly, as we saw that happen with Jackson Avery. However, in the end, she was killed off as a shock victim in the hospital shooting, and nobody really shed any tears.

Alana Cahill

Dr. Cahill came in for one reason: to attempt to save the hospital after it struggled financially due to the plane crash. However, her methods very quickly made her one of the most hated characters on Grey’s Anatomy ever. That was made even worse when she found a buyer for the hospital, but not as a way to save it.

She made it clear there was only one option by this point. It had to be sold for parts. Fortunately, Meredith and the other victims of the plane crash were finding a way to save the hospital. They just needed time.

Shane Ross

As the original interns advanced in their careers, new interns had to come into the show. One of those was Shane Ross, who very quickly proved that he was willing to do whatever it took to win. That included pushing boundaries and ignoring orders.

Ross disobeyed orders to the point where he lost a patient. And it was a big one. He killed Alex Karev’s father, and yet he faced no consequences. When he decided to leave with Cristina, nobody really minded.

Eliza Minnick

At the start of Grey’s Anatomy Season 13, the hospital needed revamp. However, that came in the form of Eliza Minnick, who was far too brash and egotistical. She opted for an authoritative way of handling situations, making her a boss and not a leader. That quickly led to viewers hating her.

Minnick didn’t once care about the dynamics on the team. She didn’t care what alreadyworked and didn’t. She thought she knew best, and we all know how well that goes in the world of medical dramas. Fortunately, she only lasted a season!

Catherine Fox

The most hated character on Grey’s Anatomy has to be Catherine Fox. At first, she wasn’t too bad. She was unlikeable, but not hated. In fact, she was even willing to step in and save the hospital with Jackson Avery in charge.

Things started to change when Cristina missed out on the Harper Avery award because the hospital was owned by the organization. She found a way around that, but that’s when she changed. She became more egotistical and narcissistic, leading to her caring more about money than saving the lives of people. By the end of Grey’s Anatomy Season 20, she fired many of the attendings, and now we have a lot of questions about whether she can be redeemable in Season 21. Probably not!

Grey’s Anatomy airs Thursdays at 10/9c on ABC. Catch up the following day on Hulu.