‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Alum Patrick Dempsey To Star In Red Nose Day ‘Love Actually’

“Grey’s Anatomy” alum Patrick Dempsey is the newest addition to the cast of the “Love Actually” spinoff exclusively released to commemorate the Red Nose Day in the United States.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Dempsey will star alongside Laura Linney. The actress previously starred in the 2003 hit movie as Sarah, but she wasn’t able to reprise her role in the Red Nose Day sequel released in March.

Despite her absence, Linney told Entertainment Weekly at the time that she will appear in the U.S. version that will be released on May 25. “I’d done something for the last Red Nose Day. So I’d kept in touch with Richard Curtis. And then he sent me an email, explaining this short film reunion. I said yes, obviously. How could I say no? And right away we were figuring out our schedules,” she said.

READ: ‘Love Actually’ Cast Reunites In Sequel Trailer

Linney filmed her scenes as Sarah in April, but during her March interview, the actress said that she still had no idea what had become of her character. In the original movie, Sarah was depicted as a lonely American businesswoman who gets into a relationship with her office crush.

Talking about the time they filmed their scenes, Linney said that she and co-star Rodrigo Santoro just got out of their respective relationships. “Rodrigo and I were both heartbroken at the time we made the film. We’d both recently been through terrible relationships and were bemoaning that moment in our lives. But we both got to make each other feel better all day long. I think you can see it in the scene after I do my Snoopy dance in the doorway: two injured people finding each other,” she said.

Meanwhile, Dempsey was last seen on the big screen when he starred in last year’s “Bridget Jones’ Diary.” He is one of the few newbies tapped to join the cast of “Love Actually.” Joining him in the U.S. version of “Red Nose Day Actually” is Kate Moss. Returning cast members include Rowan Atkinson, Liam Neeson, Hugh Grant, Bill Nighy, Colin Firth, Andrew Lincoln, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Keira Knightley.

According to Variety, “Love Actually” cast member Emma Thompson will not be reprising her role because her onscreen partner, Alan Rickman, will also not be part of the project. The actor passed away last year. During the press tour for “Beauty and the Beast,” Thompson explained that director and writer Curtis was unable to write her part in the special because of Rickman’s untimely demise. “Richard wrote to me and said, ‘Darling, we can’t write anything for you because of Alan.’ And I said, ‘No, of course, it would be sad, too sad.’ It’s too soon. It’s absolutely right because it’s supposed to be for Comic Relief but there isn’t much comic relief in the loss of our dear friend, really, just over a year ago,” she said.

The actor, who played the role of Harry, passed away in January 2016 after battling cancer. Following his death, Thompson penned a touching tribute for her co-star where she called him “the ultimate ally.”

The “Love Actually” spinoff will air on NBC on May 25 at 10 p.m. EST.