‘Grey’s Anatomy’: Sarah Drew Always Wanted Jackson and April to End Up Together
Many Grey’s Anatomy fans were devastated when April Kepner (Sarah Drew) and Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) did not end up together. So how do the actors feel about the couple now? Ahead of her return in Grey’s Anatomy Season 17, Drew opened up about her thoughts on Japril and their endgame status.
What happened to April Kepner and Jackson Avery on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’?
April and Jackson have quite the story on Grey’s Anatomy. The friends-turned-lovers got secretly married after leaving Matthew Taylor (Justin Bruening) at the altar. They also went through the death of Samuel Norbert Avery together. Then after their divorce, April and Jackson continued to show up for one another and their daughter, Harriet Kepner-Avery.
In Grey’s Anatomy Season 14, April reconnected with Matthew. The couple got married in the season finale. Meanwhile, April quit her job at Grey Sloan Memorial to help homeless communities in Seattle. She also continued to co-parent Harriet with Jackson — just offscreen.
What Sarah Drew says of April and Jackson in ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Season 17
Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 confirmed April and Jackson are reuniting in the new episode on May 6, “Look Up Child.” Meanwhile, Drew shared what April and Jackson have been up to since she left the series.
“She’s still living in Seattle with Matthew and co-parenting Harriet,” Drew told Entertainment Tonight in April 2021. “They’ve seen one another. They’ve been co-parenting this whole time. … I would say [Jackson and April have] always been a healthy, working, co-parenting team.”
That said, Drew wasn’t able to say whether her Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 appearance will allow Jackson and April’s romantic relationship to come up again. But when speaking with TVLine, the actor suggested there could be some closure.
“You could say there are elements of closure,” Drew teased. “But then at the same time, there are always ways to open that back up.”
Sarah Drew on Jackson and April’s relationship on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’
Whatever happens when Jackson and April reunite in Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 Episode 13 on May 6, Drew has her own thoughts and feelings about the couple’s relationship. Following her exit in 2018, Drew told The Hollywood Reporter she was “devastated” when Jackson and April weren’t endgame.
“I thought Jackson and April were meant to get back together and they were going to get married again and realize they’d been crazy and it was just going to be this long, slow burn,” Drew said at the time.
Then in an interview with Access from April 2021, Drew admitted she’s still personally rooting for Jackson and April to get back together.
“I’ve always said that I’ve been a Japril fan. That was always my hope for them,” Drew said. “I know that there are a lot of Japril fans out there.”
For now, Grey’s Anatomy fans will just have to wait and see how Japril’s story ends in season 17. So stay tuned. It’s going to be extraordinary.
Grey’s Anatomy Season 17 airs Thursday nights on ABC.
