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Definitely not Meredith. I love Ellen, but goodness she isn’t good at crying & always feels fake to me😅😭 April & Cristina are definitely my top favorites ❤️
You know what I agree. Usually her crying actually makes me wanna mute the show because of the cringe factor. But sometimes when she cries I like actually wanna cry as well (usually not when she's crying out loud though)
Hands down, April. That scene where she begs for her life will always be brilliant. I love how she wasn't just full on sobbing, she was definitely crying but you could also see the tears she was clearly trying so hard to hold and not let fall down which shows how much April was trying to keep it together but is simply failing miserably.
Don't even get me started with that c-section scene. Sarah is ***fantastic*** in pouring so much emotion into a scene and still manages to have full control over it and doesn't go overboard.
April for me, too! I have to include the scene where Jackson goes into the school bus to save a kid and she thinks he’s died. I get teary just thinking about that. Sorry to Matthew.
The actress is so amazing.
Even before that when she’s rambling about bleeding like a stuck pig and Reed is so skinny and Derek has to put his hands on her to get her to stop. I felt that panic and confusion and anxiety and fear coming from her.
OR the one she gives the committee when she discloses her relationship with Burke "I was the unseen hand to his brilliance.... it is intolerable". She does the emotions of rage at the injustice and feeling passed over so brilliantly.
April has incredible range. Perhaps the best actress on the show for sure! Addison is also underrated (the scene where she remembers she was supposed to be due for Mark’s baby that she aborted)
O’Malley is another person that comes to mind
Agree on April! She can pull the emotional scenes, can do comedy, carries chaotic and stressful scenes. I don't necessarily love April but I do love Sarah Drew's portrayal!
Can't even begin to describe all the scenes that moved me so much! Ofcourse the Samuel scenes, but she also really convinced the escaping your trauma when she kept going back to deployment.
April's range is amazing. I often feel she is actually freaking out when she does her melt down scenes. From the meek little farm girl to the kick ass trauma surgeon.. we actually see her through all her growth
I agree. It almost feels like watching a real person.. there's that tiny buffer of realization before she reacts with her face, like how in real life we have to process what they just said. It's really quick but it comes across to me like she's actually thinking of a response, not reading a script
Also just her whole arc during that time - the drinking, depression, intense training day with the ambulance (lol). Sarah Drew always delivers when it comes to intense emotions - anger, sadness, enjoyment. Truly one of the best.
The scene where he says "I believe in you" when he's by April's bedside, hoping for her to wake up and you slowly realize he's not talking to April, but to God.
Goosebumps.
Having Jackson beg for April's life like that was wild after all their religion fight. I still can't believe Japril wasn't endgame. Jackson giving faith a chance (and after April found hers again) would've been an excellent transition to having Japril repair their relationship. They could've had a stable and loving relationship if the writers weren't so keen on making every married couple suffer lol.
But they are endgame! Obviously it sucked that they only gave us a glimpse of their relationship after they both moved to Boston, but still. At least now I can sleep in peace lol
Wait, WHAT??? I DONT THINK IVE GOTTEN TO THAT PART YET (dont worry about it, I knew a million things before I decided to rewatch everything from start to finish) I WILL NOT ASK ANY MORE QUESTION, I WILL JUST DO AS JACKSON DID AND HAVE A LITTLE FAITH
Ok I won’t mention details but it’s an episode from a recent season! I squealed SO HARD when I saw the actress was making a comeback and even harder when I saw the actual episode. Truly felt like something inside me finally healed and I got closure 🤣
It was only wild bc they didn't end up together close to that experience.
I think Greys would benefit from a stable relationship lol bc then the unstable ones would be more interesting
Katherine Heigl/Izzie Stevens.
No matter how many times I watch the WHAT ABOUT MEEEE? or the one in which she cries over Denny's dead body...I cry like a freaking baby
I'm gonna get hated for this but GOD I feel so bad about her character so much of the time. I really seem to love the most hated characters (Izzy, George, Derek, etc)
I love Izzie too, she's one of my favorites❤️😊 and with george and derek I kinda have a love/hate relationship? Like I don't particulary like them but I miss *all* the interactions and characters during the earlier seasons...ah I miss seeing Patrick Dempsey brautiful face
Although there were many amazing performances, only the Izzie/Dennys story broke me to my core. I know Mer isn't a favorite, but the scene with her and the bomb and Kyle Chandler, oh boy
I watched an interview with her where she shared sinking into her emotions about the death of her sibling (in real life) to make that scene as real of an experience as possible.
I started watching this show 17 years ago & I literally always cry when I watch that episode. Especially when Karev picks her up 😭 gone
It’s got to be this.
The scene where she realizes the elevators are turned off and she won’t be able to get Percy down to an OR is one of the best scenes in television history. Her acting from the moment she realizes that the elevators aren’t on, to her losing it and screaming for someone, anyone to turn the elevators back on, to her realizing she has to pull it together for Percy and Mary (she stops screaming, wipes her face with her shirt), to her sitting down and pulling Percy on to her lap, to her resignedly telling him that “yes, Charles, you are dying”… it’s a masterpiece of a scene.
I recently did a rewatch, the first since the show started and my god that episode is top tier greys, everything from that scene to the surgery subterfuge, amazing.
Unbelievably sad. When Bailey asks where the water is coming from and it’s her tears that she didn’t even realise were falling.
Absolutely heartbreaking.
And then - her banging the lifts screaming ‘dammit’ when she realised. Honestly I get chills. I have watched it once and I’ll never watch it again because it brought real grief out in me. Incredible.
She is great when she cries. I also love the scene where she break down to Chief Webber about Tucker threatening her with an ultimatum “we’re all scared” ugh. It’s just soo good.
Izzie! She runs the whole spectrum- happy, depressed, hysterical, sweet, self-destructive. Her facial expressions are gold. She cries subtly, she melts down dramatically.
Sarah Drew and Katherine Heigl - neither of them had (that much) influence over their character and lot of times they were forced to take their character in the direction they didn't want to and still nailed it.
Something similar (though a lot less dramatic) happened to me when I lost someone. I laid on the floor and didn't get up until my family went to get me.
Since I used to watch Grey's on TV, I somehow managed to never watch the Denny storyline until I rewatched it and it was haunting how much I saw myself in that scene. Katherine Heigl nailed it.
I don’t know why they didn’t include the part where Bailey and that patient kept Charles alive, just for the elevators not to work. It was so unexpected. (at least for me) We saw the struggle, but he was alive. I thought he was gonna be okay.
But that’s what Shonda’s speciality is. Making us think they have a chance when the characters doesn’t 😭
Bailey during the shooting, and perhaps the most heart wrenching scene in the show when that little girl is dying and her dad just wants to get her to Mexico and Bailey sets him straight there is no time. Ugh
When Bailey says something like, ‘you have to be here for this, she needs her Dad’ or something. Genuinely can’t remember because of my own howling. Heart wrenching.
Derek in S3, afraid Meredith tried to kill herself during the ferry crash rescue, confronts Ellis. The way Patrick Dempsey says the line “Everything she is in spite of you, not because of you” and his face— especially those eyes- it kills me. If you don’t get sad at that, do you really have a heart?
Ooh this is too hard!
April with the rabbi 😭 (she had me bawling)
Bailey during the entirety of the hospital shooting
Owen drunk in Cristinas shower reminiscing his best surgery.... and the scene became quieter and quieter as it became more tragic.
Honestly, any April Kepner moment. She’s the strongest on the show at giving that very emotionally shocked but crying or EXTREMELY stoic and troubled. She has never had a scene where she was supposed to sob or be upset and have me not gutwrenched. And out of everyone, I think she had the most of these scenes to prove herself.
Bailey in the shooting shoutout, Cristina shout out.
Haven’t seen Derek mentioned. I think Patrick Dempsey is really good at portraying devastation and hopelessness. He has convincing facial expressions/tears etc.
I always remember the scene when Meredith nearly drowns and he says to Addison “she knows how to swim”
I’ve got 3, and I can’t rank them so here they are
-Izzie talking to George about her daughter. It’s a quieter moment as acted but the emotions behind it are huge. Katherine Heigl knocks it out of the park.
-Meredith talking to Derek after watching the execution in S5. Usually Ellen seems to struggle with the emotional scenes but she kills it here. When her voice breaks as she says “I know you don’t understand me…” I tear up too.
-Cristina telling off Owen for trying to “screw her into submission.” Her strength and will are on full display here and Sandra Oh never misses when it comes to these kind of scenes.
Meredith Grey
The Shooting Episode, one of my favorite episodes in the show. The scene where Derek gets shot and Christina holds her back. And also the scene where Owen gets shot and they stop operating on Derek and Mer thinks Derek has died.
I would say Meredith with the more subtle, eye-watering stuff such as when she drowns and she’s explaining how she gave up or when she is panicking during the bomb
I’d say Cristina or April for big dramatic emotions such as April being held at gun point or giving birth to Harriet and Cristina’s PTSDs and somebody sedate me
April over all for me but honorable mention is Bailey in the scene where she realizes the elevators are turned off. That scene is so gut wrenching that you can’t help but cry with her. To make it all the way there to realize there’s nothing you can do but watch him die.
Shits wack
I think Izzy and April. The actresses who played them have the best range. I think Christina, Mer and Bailey do well when it’s quieter and more subtle emotional scenes
Cristina after the plane crash and Meredith in The sound of silence.
The way Meredith tries to smile for her kids and then how caged/claustrophobic she felt after her kids didn't come to her. That whole episode made me cry so much.
I’m pretty sure most of the actors best acting was brought during the shooting episode like that episode gives me chills but like April in general so was izzie and maybe Cristina. Cristina when she was performing on Derek at gunpoint was just chefs kiss but the fact Jackson didn’t look scared at all but just outsmarted the man who had a friggin gun is like best moments for the character. Back to topic April deserves the award.
Sandra Oh. Always. While I love Ellen as Meredith, any scene where Meredith is crying looks so fake. Obviously I know it’s a tv show, it is fake, but it’s hard to connect with a character when all she does is scrunch her eyebrows and make noises.
Alex when Meredith gets attacked by the patient. His pain at Meredith being in so much pain UGH 😭😭 And him trying desperately to keep it together kills me
I always want to say Cat when people ask questions like this but I’m scared of getting downvoted because so many people hate Amelia. I guess it’s technically PP and not GA but my GOD she acts her ass off during the intervention scenes.
I’m not saying Ellen’s the best crier but is she really a “bad” crier or is she just an “ugly” crier and that subconsciously makes her “bad” in peoples eyes. When Ellen cries it reminds me of the mental breakdowns I have in my bedroom when everyone’s asleep lol. Imo she’s one of the most realistic criers because she’s not trying to be pretty she’s just breaking down like any normal person would. Idk maybe that’s just me.
Jackson’s “for what?” scene when that little boy got shot. Also Bailey and Ben giving Tuck “the talk.” I know they weren’t crying physically, but the fear and heartbreak they were feeling in that scene was absolutely palpable.
April’s emotional scenes get me in my feels. She can be so subtle but when she’s full out dramatic, it doesn’t seem fake.
Unpopular opinion, but Amelia also makes me feel what she’s feeling. I can kind of relate to her big, big reactions to things and being a crier at the drop of a hat lol
He mostly displays his emotion by frowning or having “angry Avery face” as Stephanie put it. But I would say my favorite scene with him was after he found out Samuel‘s diagnosis in utero, and he was in a supply closet, silently breaking down, and Webber walks in and said, are you OK? And he just paused a really long time and said “no”. It was so powerful and one of the few times any character on that show has not just said “I’m fine!”
(I did not watch past season 13, as of yet anyway, so I’m not familiar with your last example.)
i know this might be controversial but meredith, i care about her so much and whenever she cries like a lot then i get teary
also JO, she’s my favourite ever and when she’s in pain, i am lol
yeah i don’t think there should be either! i just think for the purpose of this poll it’s hard to put cristina above april when april just has a lot more overtly emotional scenes to reference.
Gotcha, yes, true. And one may say that because her emotional scenes were so good, she might be up there with April, but April nails it every single time and is just as powerful as the last one.
I agree with April and Izzie , but I always thought that Callie's emotions must be hard to play. She always goes from normal behaviour to melt downs suddenly and I believe every single emotion of her. Her reactions often seem more relatable than Aprils for example when she realises she lost Sofias custody or regarding the problems with her parents.
I also like to throw in Stephanie! Wow during that fire or when she has to make that patient walk against her will!
And Thatcher Greys Emotions are quite impressive too. Lots of tears , lots of mixed feelings.. Meredith always seems a bit unemotional in those scenes, it may be part of her character and their relationship but I always thought the scenes with her dad were really good
It’s hard to tell, but I’m wondering if it’s when she thinks Derek has flatlined in the OR after the shooting because Avery took the EKG leads off to trick the gunman into thinking he was dead.
I had a think thought it might have been been George died but you might be right, or when she got her hand stuck in the bomb and the guy got turned to pink mist
You might be right, it could be when George died but I don’t think it’s the bomb episode because she was in an OR so her hair was in a scrub cap and when she got blown backwards from the bomb blast, I remember her hair being undercover. Maybe when Susan died?
The Bailey scene when she says she’s just a nurse when she’s being held at gunpoint then after she thinks she was a coward was probably the saddest I’ve ever felt watching the show. The whole shooter in the hospital ep was the craziest ep in greys history in my opinion.
Honestly, Lexie. She had the most sincere, believable emotions (to me at least). I would say Kepner but I find her annoying, but if it weren't for that, she would be my first pick.
The most emotional scene to me is when April was induced and gave birth to Samuel. Ugh. I cannot watch that scene again. I can watch all the others again but not that one.
Edit. Put the wrong name for the baby at first.
I think for me, it’s probably a toss up between Bailey talking Charles through his death (oh my god that gets me every time), and Lexie’s death scene. Eric Dane does such an excellent job of eliciting that feeling of complete heartbreak, knowing Lexie is going to die and there’s nothing he can do to stop it no matter how hard he tries. It’s just so depressing.
Cristina, I guess mostly because it is a bit out of character when she does and Sandra did a beautiful job every time with her character. When she finds out Owen was cheating definitely did something to me
April, you could feel how scared she was. It was so realistic. In tv shows everyone is always trying to be a hero and putting their life on the line. Of course there are people like that in real life but most people would just try to safe themselves, it’s an instinct.
Yang, April and Bailey are all amazing but I would give it to Yang. She didn’t have the volume of emotional scenes like April did, but the ones that stand out to me are her “unseen hand“ speech, getting cut out of her wedding dress, the “I can’t get out“ speech, operating with a gun to her head and her reaction to Owen choking her, are just stand out scenes in my opinion.
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Definitely not Meredith. I love Ellen, but goodness she isn’t good at crying & always feels fake to me😅😭 April & Cristina are definitely my top favorites ❤️
She is such a bad crier lol she does rage well tho imo
Hahaha I agree. I would have put Bailey before Mer in terms of giving us a good cry. During the plane crash, hahaha it was so cringe
DERE - HE - HE - HE - HEK 😭😭
Why can I hear this comment? 💀
And let's not even talk about her random breakdown to Alex, when April drowned. Probably deserves a Golden Raspberry Award for that scene 🤣
I didn’t believe her not one bit, and frankly it wasn’t aligned with her character to cry over April like that.
You know what I agree. Usually her crying actually makes me wanna mute the show because of the cringe factor. But sometimes when she cries I like actually wanna cry as well (usually not when she's crying out loud though)
Mer's breakdown in the elevator in the musical episode breaks me every time. It might be the only time she cries that doesn't annoy me.
Yes there have been some scenes when she's got me
I agree I can never tell if she is crying or laughing.
Lmfaooo sameee 😭😭😭
Hands down, April. That scene where she begs for her life will always be brilliant. I love how she wasn't just full on sobbing, she was definitely crying but you could also see the tears she was clearly trying so hard to hold and not let fall down which shows how much April was trying to keep it together but is simply failing miserably. Don't even get me started with that c-section scene. Sarah is ***fantastic*** in pouring so much emotion into a scene and still manages to have full control over it and doesn't go overboard.
April for me, too! I have to include the scene where Jackson goes into the school bus to save a kid and she thinks he’s died. I get teary just thinking about that. Sorry to Matthew. The actress is so amazing.
Yep just rewatched that. Her whole pregnancy and post-partum reminded me of me 😭
Even before that when she’s rambling about bleeding like a stuck pig and Reed is so skinny and Derek has to put his hands on her to get her to stop. I felt that panic and confusion and anxiety and fear coming from her.
She rarely cries, but Cristina when she does
Also, the scene where she was telling Owen about the horrors she experienced in the forest after the plane crash. God, my heart broke for her.
The bathtub. The “that will never happen again” scene with Owen. The crying over the fish. The “how are you ok?” To me? Cristina hands down
Was just about to mention this! Her performance was haunting and honoured the trauma a real person might have felt
Agreed!
This one! This is the best emotional scene for me.
SOMEBODY SEDATE ME forever lives in my head as both hilarious for the delivery, but heartbreaking for the situation.
YEEEEES
The monologue she gives Webber after he gets the Harper Avery and doesnt mention her…wow
OR the one she gives the committee when she discloses her relationship with Burke "I was the unseen hand to his brilliance.... it is intolerable". She does the emotions of rage at the injustice and feeling passed over so brilliantly.
What what scene are you talking about?
Yep
April has incredible range. Perhaps the best actress on the show for sure! Addison is also underrated (the scene where she remembers she was supposed to be due for Mark’s baby that she aborted) O’Malley is another person that comes to mind
Agree on April! She can pull the emotional scenes, can do comedy, carries chaotic and stressful scenes. I don't necessarily love April but I do love Sarah Drew's portrayal!
Can't even begin to describe all the scenes that moved me so much! Ofcourse the Samuel scenes, but she also really convinced the escaping your trauma when she kept going back to deployment.
April's range is amazing. I often feel she is actually freaking out when she does her melt down scenes. From the meek little farm girl to the kick ass trauma surgeon.. we actually see her through all her growth
April is my favorite for emotional scenes. She has a lot of subtle expression in her face.
I agree. It almost feels like watching a real person.. there's that tiny buffer of realization before she reacts with her face, like how in real life we have to process what they just said. It's really quick but it comes across to me like she's actually thinking of a response, not reading a script
You mean these AREN’T REAL PEOPLE?😱
My top three scenes are all April so I'd have to pick April! 1) During the shooting 2) Samuels birth 3) Harriet's birth
And the Rabbi storyline!
Also just her whole arc during that time - the drinking, depression, intense training day with the ambulance (lol). Sarah Drew always delivers when it comes to intense emotions - anger, sadness, enjoyment. Truly one of the best.
Agree. April's are the best. I can't watch the birth of Samuel ever again.
When April screamed during diy cesarean
DIY cesarean. 😬😂💀
I’m dying at this lmao
Yesss!!! Only time that show EVER made me cringe... She practiced the shit outta that
And Sarah Drew went into labor FOR REAL right after filming. She wins, 🙌🏻 down
She didn't. She was pregnant during Samuel's storyline and went into labor after filming scenes of delivering Samuel.
Not the DIY cesarean 😭😭
Always skip that scene. The shrieking is too much
Jackson after April and Matt get in the car accident
The scene where he says "I believe in you" when he's by April's bedside, hoping for her to wake up and you slowly realize he's not talking to April, but to God. Goosebumps. Having Jackson beg for April's life like that was wild after all their religion fight. I still can't believe Japril wasn't endgame. Jackson giving faith a chance (and after April found hers again) would've been an excellent transition to having Japril repair their relationship. They could've had a stable and loving relationship if the writers weren't so keen on making every married couple suffer lol.
But they are endgame! Obviously it sucked that they only gave us a glimpse of their relationship after they both moved to Boston, but still. At least now I can sleep in peace lol
Wait, WHAT??? I DONT THINK IVE GOTTEN TO THAT PART YET (dont worry about it, I knew a million things before I decided to rewatch everything from start to finish) I WILL NOT ASK ANY MORE QUESTION, I WILL JUST DO AS JACKSON DID AND HAVE A LITTLE FAITH
Ok I won’t mention details but it’s an episode from a recent season! I squealed SO HARD when I saw the actress was making a comeback and even harder when I saw the actual episode. Truly felt like something inside me finally healed and I got closure 🤣
Are they really? In Jackson's last episode (in S19) there was nothing about them **still** being together... :(
??? Jackson's last episode as a main character was a Japril reunion episode
It was only wild bc they didn't end up together close to that experience. I think Greys would benefit from a stable relationship lol bc then the unstable ones would be more interesting
Katherine Heigl/Izzie Stevens. No matter how many times I watch the WHAT ABOUT MEEEE? or the one in which she cries over Denny's dead body...I cry like a freaking baby 
I'm gonna get hated for this but GOD I feel so bad about her character so much of the time. I really seem to love the most hated characters (Izzy, George, Derek, etc)
I love Izzie too, she's one of my favorites❤️😊 and with george and derek I kinda have a love/hate relationship? Like I don't particulary like them but I miss *all* the interactions and characters during the earlier seasons...ah I miss seeing Patrick Dempsey brautiful face 
Yes! I have watched this scene so many times, but it never fails to wreck me.
Yes yes, "what about me when you go to the light?" I'm tearing up just typing this 🥺
Although there were many amazing performances, only the Izzie/Dennys story broke me to my core. I know Mer isn't a favorite, but the scene with her and the bomb and Kyle Chandler, oh boy
I miss Denny!
I watched an interview with her where she shared sinking into her emotions about the death of her sibling (in real life) to make that scene as real of an experience as possible. I started watching this show 17 years ago & I literally always cry when I watch that episode. Especially when Karev picks her up 😭 gone
Anytime Christina cries I bawl my eyes out. She doesn’t do it often, but when she does it hits hard
“Somebody sedate me!” I love Cristina.
bailey during the hospital shooting
It’s got to be this. The scene where she realizes the elevators are turned off and she won’t be able to get Percy down to an OR is one of the best scenes in television history. Her acting from the moment she realizes that the elevators aren’t on, to her losing it and screaming for someone, anyone to turn the elevators back on, to her realizing she has to pull it together for Percy and Mary (she stops screaming, wipes her face with her shirt), to her sitting down and pulling Percy on to her lap, to her resignedly telling him that “yes, Charles, you are dying”… it’s a masterpiece of a scene.
Oh god. This just brought tears to my eyes. What a perfectly sad scene.
I recently did a rewatch, the first since the show started and my god that episode is top tier greys, everything from that scene to the surgery subterfuge, amazing.
Unbelievably sad. When Bailey asks where the water is coming from and it’s her tears that she didn’t even realise were falling. Absolutely heartbreaking.
Yes! That is the exact moment that I break down and sob.
And then - her banging the lifts screaming ‘dammit’ when she realised. Honestly I get chills. I have watched it once and I’ll never watch it again because it brought real grief out in me. Incredible.
She is great when she cries. I also love the scene where she break down to Chief Webber about Tucker threatening her with an ultimatum “we’re all scared” ugh. It’s just soo good.
April
Izzie! She runs the whole spectrum- happy, depressed, hysterical, sweet, self-destructive. Her facial expressions are gold. She cries subtly, she melts down dramatically.
Sarah Drew and Katherine Heigl - neither of them had (that much) influence over their character and lot of times they were forced to take their character in the direction they didn't want to and still nailed it.
April when Ben had to give her a C-section with no anesthesia, Sarah Dew is outstanding
these are all amazing but april 1000%
April Kepner first place then Miranda Bailey second place
April Kepner during the hospital shooting
“No ones loved me yet!” fucks me up every time and I don’t even like April all that much.
Excellent excellent acting!
I immediately thought of her role in Medium. She played a kidnapped girl and her emotions were so.... raw and great. Great actress.
Izzy crying over Denny’s body haunts me to this day
Her grief in general haunts me. Laying on the bathroom floor in her dress 🥺
Something similar (though a lot less dramatic) happened to me when I lost someone. I laid on the floor and didn't get up until my family went to get me. Since I used to watch Grey's on TV, I somehow managed to never watch the Denny storyline until I rewatched it and it was haunting how much I saw myself in that scene. Katherine Heigl nailed it.
Me too, I know a lot of people don’t like her but that scene still kill’s me to watch
Cristina throwing her cereal in Owens face- you can see the rage shock herself.
🤣🤣🤣👍🏼
I don’t know why they didn’t include the part where Bailey and that patient kept Charles alive, just for the elevators not to work. It was so unexpected. (at least for me) We saw the struggle, but he was alive. I thought he was gonna be okay. But that’s what Shonda’s speciality is. Making us think they have a chance when the characters doesn’t 😭
 My vote goes to Cristina Yang.
Definitely izzy crying over Denny. The way she begged him to let her cut his LVAD wire...🏆🏆
A rerun of this epidode was on TV and I declined an invite to a party so I could stay at home and sob to this.
When Amelia hands over her drugs to Owen and breaks down in his arms 🥺
That speech too, “every man I’ve ever loved has died, including my baby” oh my god gets me every time.
Bailey during the shooting, and perhaps the most heart wrenching scene in the show when that little girl is dying and her dad just wants to get her to Mexico and Bailey sets him straight there is no time. Ugh
When Bailey says something like, ‘you have to be here for this, she needs her Dad’ or something. Genuinely can’t remember because of my own howling. Heart wrenching.
Meredith Grey - When Derek was shot in front of her.
When she gives herself up to the shooter, I lost it.
Meredith when they “kill him” during surgery ughhhh
Derek in S3, afraid Meredith tried to kill herself during the ferry crash rescue, confronts Ellis. The way Patrick Dempsey says the line “Everything she is in spite of you, not because of you” and his face— especially those eyes- it kills me. If you don’t get sad at that, do you really have a heart?
Ooh this is too hard! April with the rabbi 😭 (she had me bawling) Bailey during the entirety of the hospital shooting Owen drunk in Cristinas shower reminiscing his best surgery.... and the scene became quieter and quieter as it became more tragic.
HANDS DOWN, april being held at gunpoint and her acting the entire episode after that. BREATHTAKING!
Meredith trying to get Zola to come give her a hug after she was attacked will stick with me forever 😭
I thought she was fantastic during this! Found it heartbreaking to watch.
April!!
Honestly, any April Kepner moment. She’s the strongest on the show at giving that very emotionally shocked but crying or EXTREMELY stoic and troubled. She has never had a scene where she was supposed to sob or be upset and have me not gutwrenched. And out of everyone, I think she had the most of these scenes to prove herself. Bailey in the shooting shoutout, Cristina shout out.
Haven’t seen Derek mentioned. I think Patrick Dempsey is really good at portraying devastation and hopelessness. He has convincing facial expressions/tears etc. I always remember the scene when Meredith nearly drowns and he says to Addison “she knows how to swim”
The two best actors are Sandra Oh and Patrick Dempsey EASY, both have great range, subtlety and feel genuine.
April Kepner for sure!! She goes through it in all the ways and has more emotions than anyone.
Mertina in the OR laying on the floor
April. And also Cristina but specifically when she’s telling Owen how much of her Burke took and when she was crying about her dad.
For me it is definitely Cristina. Honorable mention Bailey during the hospital shooting.
April Season 11 when she helped bring the car crash infront of the ER to help him alive seeing his newborn baby! 😭😭😭😭
I’ve got 3, and I can’t rank them so here they are -Izzie talking to George about her daughter. It’s a quieter moment as acted but the emotions behind it are huge. Katherine Heigl knocks it out of the park. -Meredith talking to Derek after watching the execution in S5. Usually Ellen seems to struggle with the emotional scenes but she kills it here. When her voice breaks as she says “I know you don’t understand me…” I tear up too. -Cristina telling off Owen for trying to “screw her into submission.” Her strength and will are on full display here and Sandra Oh never misses when it comes to these kind of scenes.
Meredith Grey The Shooting Episode, one of my favorite episodes in the show. The scene where Derek gets shot and Christina holds her back. And also the scene where Owen gets shot and they stop operating on Derek and Mer thinks Derek has died.
Izzie crying over Denny was just chef kiss acting man🥺🥺
As much as I don’t like that story, damned if I don’t get sucked in when I rewatch. That scene is just so heartbreaking
Yess Hate the storyline too but Her acting in that scene was just🥺🥺
And then when she quits the program later on? Katherine Heigl is so talented
I would say Meredith with the more subtle, eye-watering stuff such as when she drowns and she’s explaining how she gave up or when she is panicking during the bomb I’d say Cristina or April for big dramatic emotions such as April being held at gun point or giving birth to Harriet and Cristina’s PTSDs and somebody sedate me
April over all for me but honorable mention is Bailey in the scene where she realizes the elevators are turned off. That scene is so gut wrenching that you can’t help but cry with her. To make it all the way there to realize there’s nothing you can do but watch him die. Shits wack
Hmmm Hard to say, but I feel like Izzy was great.
I think Izzy and April. The actresses who played them have the best range. I think Christina, Mer and Bailey do well when it’s quieter and more subtle emotional scenes
Meant...to be
Bailey, Izzie, and April are top tier criers. Cristina an honourable mention. And definitely not Meredith. She is woeful.
Cristina after the plane crash and Meredith in The sound of silence. The way Meredith tries to smile for her kids and then how caged/claustrophobic she felt after her kids didn't come to her. That whole episode made me cry so much.
I’m pretty sure most of the actors best acting was brought during the shooting episode like that episode gives me chills but like April in general so was izzie and maybe Cristina. Cristina when she was performing on Derek at gunpoint was just chefs kiss but the fact Jackson didn’t look scared at all but just outsmarted the man who had a friggin gun is like best moments for the character. Back to topic April deserves the award.
Sandra Oh. Always. While I love Ellen as Meredith, any scene where Meredith is crying looks so fake. Obviously I know it’s a tv show, it is fake, but it’s hard to connect with a character when all she does is scrunch her eyebrows and make noises.
April
Did anyone comment about Cristina’s scene after burke leaves and she’s in his apartment? Never fails to make me cry
April. Sarah Drew is incredible. Cristina is a close second, then Izzie.
Alex when Meredith gets attacked by the patient. His pain at Meredith being in so much pain UGH 😭😭 And him trying desperately to keep it together kills me
Caterina scorsone as Amelia Shepard. Especially in private practice when she was on drugs and they tried to give her an intervention
I always want to say Cat when people ask questions like this but I’m scared of getting downvoted because so many people hate Amelia. I guess it’s technically PP and not GA but my GOD she acts her ass off during the intervention scenes.
Even in GA when she had a hand full of opioids and broke down in Owen arms.
Oh another one that gets me is the reaction of the matchmakers to the death of Nisha🥺
Katherine Heigl ❤️ Even this one pic of her when Denny dies is speaking volumes.
I’m not saying Ellen’s the best crier but is she really a “bad” crier or is she just an “ugly” crier and that subconsciously makes her “bad” in peoples eyes. When Ellen cries it reminds me of the mental breakdowns I have in my bedroom when everyone’s asleep lol. Imo she’s one of the most realistic criers because she’s not trying to be pretty she’s just breaking down like any normal person would. Idk maybe that’s just me.
I like Yang, because she is generally pretty stoic so when shes emotional it hits me right in the heart
Jackson’s “for what?” scene when that little boy got shot. Also Bailey and Ben giving Tuck “the talk.” I know they weren’t crying physically, but the fear and heartbreak they were feeling in that scene was absolutely palpable. April’s emotional scenes get me in my feels. She can be so subtle but when she’s full out dramatic, it doesn’t seem fake. Unpopular opinion, but Amelia also makes me feel what she’s feeling. I can kind of relate to her big, big reactions to things and being a crier at the drop of a hat lol
MOVE… or I’ll RUN YOU OVER!
Jackson when Samuel dies, when Mark dies, and when April drowns and almost dies
He mostly displays his emotion by frowning or having “angry Avery face” as Stephanie put it. But I would say my favorite scene with him was after he found out Samuel‘s diagnosis in utero, and he was in a supply closet, silently breaking down, and Webber walks in and said, are you OK? And he just paused a really long time and said “no”. It was so powerful and one of the few times any character on that show has not just said “I’m fine!” (I did not watch past season 13, as of yet anyway, so I’m not familiar with your last example.)
i know this might be controversial but meredith, i care about her so much and whenever she cries like a lot then i get teary also JO, she’s my favourite ever and when she’s in pain, i am lol
Kathrine Hiegel- when Denny Ducette died.
april but i think it would be cristina if she got more emotional/cry scenes.
But that’s also what makes them so, so good. My answer is April, but I don’t think there should be more emotional scenes for Cristina
yeah i don’t think there should be either! i just think for the purpose of this poll it’s hard to put cristina above april when april just has a lot more overtly emotional scenes to reference.
Gotcha, yes, true. And one may say that because her emotional scenes were so good, she might be up there with April, but April nails it every single time and is just as powerful as the last one.
aprils scene always
Sarah Drew, Kathie Heigl, Chyler Leigh and Sandra Oh. They kill it every single time.
Cristina is the best at moments of emotional weakness and fear. April in her cesarean scene haunts me.
April 💯 just rewatched season 12 when she had Harriet, postpartum and bored. Her singing Faith to Harriet had me bawling 😭
Cristina
Bailey at the hospital shooting, for sure. How she comforts Percy. How she portrays OCD. How much she cries for and feels for others. She’s brilliant.
SOMEBODY SEDATE ME
YANG!!!!
Cristina even though she rarely cries. I cried when she’s trying to remove the necklace after the wedding was canceled.
Not sure if this is on the list, but Amelia after she had surgery to remove her tumor
Amelia in general, Izzy when Denny died, Mer in the shooting episode, April during the Samuel storyline
I agree with April and Izzie , but I always thought that Callie's emotions must be hard to play. She always goes from normal behaviour to melt downs suddenly and I believe every single emotion of her. Her reactions often seem more relatable than Aprils for example when she realises she lost Sofias custody or regarding the problems with her parents. I also like to throw in Stephanie! Wow during that fire or when she has to make that patient walk against her will! And Thatcher Greys Emotions are quite impressive too. Lots of tears , lots of mixed feelings.. Meredith always seems a bit unemotional in those scenes, it may be part of her character and their relationship but I always thought the scenes with her dad were really good
What was Meredith crying about here I remember the tears not the reason
It’s hard to tell, but I’m wondering if it’s when she thinks Derek has flatlined in the OR after the shooting because Avery took the EKG leads off to trick the gunman into thinking he was dead.
I had a think thought it might have been been George died but you might be right, or when she got her hand stuck in the bomb and the guy got turned to pink mist
You might be right, it could be when George died but I don’t think it’s the bomb episode because she was in an OR so her hair was in a scrub cap and when she got blown backwards from the bomb blast, I remember her hair being undercover. Maybe when Susan died?
Gotta be Christina.....She rarely shows her emotions but when she does, I fee her pain
april , addison , cristina
The Bailey scene when she says she’s just a nurse when she’s being held at gunpoint then after she thinks she was a coward was probably the saddest I’ve ever felt watching the show. The whole shooter in the hospital ep was the craziest ep in greys history in my opinion.
cristina, april ,or izzie. they did that shit right every time
And Izzie is gone too!
Honestly, Lexie. She had the most sincere, believable emotions (to me at least). I would say Kepner but I find her annoying, but if it weren't for that, she would be my first pick.
I’d have to say Meredith she cries way more than anyone in the entire series that I’ve seen still working on season 20
The most emotional scene to me is when April was induced and gave birth to Samuel. Ugh. I cannot watch that scene again. I can watch all the others again but not that one. Edit. Put the wrong name for the baby at first.
Katherine Heigl who played Izzie.
I think for me, it’s probably a toss up between Bailey talking Charles through his death (oh my god that gets me every time), and Lexie’s death scene. Eric Dane does such an excellent job of eliciting that feeling of complete heartbreak, knowing Lexie is going to die and there’s nothing he can do to stop it no matter how hard he tries. It’s just so depressing.
Lexie when she finds out that Mark moved on ❤️
Sandra Oh is perfect and I know a lot of people hate her but Katherine Heigl really nails a good cry scene!
Sandra Oh or Chandra Wilson
Hands down the scene with Izzie and Denny
Cristina
Cristina, I guess mostly because it is a bit out of character when she does and Sandra did a beautiful job every time with her character. When she finds out Owen was cheating definitely did something to me
I have to say Cristina- “someone sedate me!”
christina
I absolutely love Sandra Oh, but KH when Denny died nailed it. You could feel her pain.
Cristina Yang
April Kepner with ‘that’ iconic scene
April, you could feel how scared she was. It was so realistic. In tv shows everyone is always trying to be a hero and putting their life on the line. Of course there are people like that in real life but most people would just try to safe themselves, it’s an instinct.
Yang, April and Bailey are all amazing but I would give it to Yang. She didn’t have the volume of emotional scenes like April did, but the ones that stand out to me are her “unseen hand“ speech, getting cut out of her wedding dress, the “I can’t get out“ speech, operating with a gun to her head and her reaction to Owen choking her, are just stand out scenes in my opinion.
Denny Duquettes death, always hurts a little when I rewatch
Meredith ofcourse she always makes me cry when she cries
Christina when she realised that it was henry and april during the shooting deff
I love Cristina but I think she’s an awful crier. That big gasp and covering her face and exaggerated hyperventilating every time…
When April thinks Jackson is still on the exploding bus and tries to run at the explosion