Ellen Pompeo has dropped the bomb that ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ fans must have been dreading – the long-running show looks like its end is in sight.

Now in its 14th season, ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ showrunner and creator Shonda Rhimes has previously said that the long-running show will go on as long as the ABC network and its main star Pompeo want it to. However, in a new interview, Pompeo, who plays Meredith Grey, revealed that the brain-trust behind the show is now thinking about winding things down in the future.

“We’re getting there. Shonda and I will make that decision together,” she told Us Weekly.

Well, that doesn’t exactly clear things up – that could mean in a year’s time or in half a decade.

Ellen PompeoEllen Pompeo has hinted 'Grey's Anatomy' might be winding down soon

“I think that one of the biggest lessons that this show has taught me and being on this show for so long has taught me, is that relationships do change. And they do grow,” she continued. “They take work. Like any marriage, friendship. You gotta put in the work. You have to accept other people’s flaws, and accept your own flaws and try to change and be a better person. But I think everything is worth the time and effort. And things get better.”

However, Pompeo did reveal her reasoning as to thinking about a timeframe for ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ to wind down: she wants to spend more time with her children as they grow up.

More: Ellen Pompeo hits back at suggestion her pay hike caused ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ cutbacks

“I want to be more involved in my kids’ lives as they get older,” she said of her three children, the oldest of whom is nine years old. “And they need me more, and this world is such a crazy place.”

In a separate interview, Pompeo spoke about the departure of fan-favourite actors Jessica Capshaw and Sarah Drew, who have been in the show since seasons 6 and 7 respectively.

“I mean, because everything is the last, right? It's the last time they'll do this, it's the last time they'll do that. It's the last time they'll rehearse and it's really emotional,” Pompeo told Entertainment Tonight in New York on Tuesday (May 1st). 

“We're a family and they were both on the show [for] nine and 10 years. ‘Grey’s…’ is such an iconic show. Everybody who's ever been on the show is meaningful to the show, right? Everybody's meaningful to the fans.”

More: Ellen Pompeo admits she might have left ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ years ago if she had been younger