Grey's Anatomy Season 17 casts Robert I Mesa as show's first indigenous American doctor

Actor Robert I Mesa, who belongs to the tribes of Navajo and Soboba, has been roped to star as James Chee, the first Indigenous doctor on the long-running medical drama Grey’s Anatomy. Mesa, who made his debut on the ABC show in the third episode of its ongoing 17th season, as the intern Chee, has been promoted as a recurring cast member. According to Variety, the character of Chee was introduced as part of the new class of interns at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, who are embarking on their careers as doctors during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mesa’s other small screen credits include Leonardo DiCaprio-produced The Men Who Built America: The Frontiersman for the History Channel and Robert Rodriguez’s From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series. Also a visual artist and photographer, Mesa last year performed in Mary Kathryn Nagle’s Manhatta, the first Yale Repertory Theatre production of a play written by a Native playwright. Meanwhile, the future of Grey’s Anatomy is in a fix, as series lead star Ellen Pompeo negotiates her contract. Recently, showrunner Krista Vernoff said that she is planning “for both contingencies” of a season and series finale for the popular and critically acclaimed drama. The series, created by Shonda Rhimes, aired on ABC in 2005.