Ellen Pompeo thinks older actresses are hired on "talent alone"

Ellen told El Pais: "When you're really young in Hollywood, you're hired for your talent, but also for your beauty. They're not hiring you for your beauty at 50 years old, they're hiring you for your complexity and your talent alone. Certainly, women are more complex as they get older, and so are the roles."

The star is one of the best-paid actresses on television thanks to her role in 'Grey's Anatomy', although she still thinks there is a long way to go for women in the industry as she was earning less than her co-star Patrick Dempsey for several years.

Pompeo said: "I think that it takes all of us women standing up for each other and supporting one another. I've had so many women be so kind to me and supportive of me, and I have tried to do the same for other women.

"I don't think I alone have done anything, I'm part of a group of extraordinarily talented women in Hollywood, and collectively, we have to come together to learn to use our voices more."

Ellen stepped back from the main 'Grey's Anatomy' cast in 2022 - although she continues to provide voiceovers as Dr. Meredith Grey - and admits that she doesn't want to leave the long-running ABC medical drama altogether as the show remains financially lucrative.

She said: "That would make no sense, emotionally or financially. The show was streamed more than a billion times in 2024. More than a billion times.

"The companies that own the show and stream the show make a lot of money from our images and our voices and our faces. If I were to walk away completely, everybody gets to make money from my hard work for 20 years and I wouldn't make any money.

"To me, it doesn't make any sense that everybody (else) gets to profit off of my hard work. And emotionally, the show means a lot to people. I want to have an attitude of gratitude toward the show."