Ellen Pompeo is making the rounds to promote her new Hulu series Good American Family, a show based on a true story of a mom who winds up accusing her adoptive daughter of trying to murder her. It’s not exactly the kind of story you’d find on mommy blogs or family influencer accounts. Luckily for Ellen, it seems like her real life as a mom is far from the plot of Good Americn Family.
Ellen has three kids with her music producer husband Chris Ivery, and she’s spoken about how important being a mom is for her. When she took a step back from her iconic role of Meredith Grey on Grey’s Anatomy in 2022, she went on The Drew Barrymore Show and talked about how a big reason for the change was so she could spend more time with her kids. “I have three kids and so I take care of them, and it’s really important for me to be around for them and be more present for them,” she said.
It sounds like Ellen makes sure to be a down-to-earth mom for her kids. Here’s everything we know about Ellen Pompeo’s kids in real life, including their many appearances on her Instagram.
Who Are Ellen Pompeo’s Kids?
Ellen Pompeo’s Kids’ Ages
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Ellen’s three kids are 15-year-old Stella Luna, 10-year-old Sienna May, and 8-year-old Eli Christopher. She’s been married to their dad Chris since 2007, and has spoken about how it’s important for her to provide her kids with role models that embody and celebrate their identities. “My daughters are Black so it’s very important to me that they see a lot of images of beautiful, powerful, strong Black women,” she told PEOPLE in 2016.
Ellen Pompeo’s Kids and Grey’s Anatomy
Even though Grey’s Anatomy is a huge part of her life, Ellen doesn’t necessarily want her kids to watch her in it. It’s understandable given those steamy call room scenes from early seasons. “My 15-year-old has seen it, and now my 10-year-old wants to see it,” she said during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “She’s not ready, but a lot of kids in her class have seen it. No judgment on other parents. But I don’t want my daughter to see me in my underwear on television just yet. But all her classmates have so… That makes for great conversation at pick-up.”
It’s definitely gotta be weird having Meredith Grey for a mom. Although Ellen is wary of showing her kids Grey’s Anatomy, they did spend time with her on set growing up. In 2015, Ellen went on The Ellen Degeneres Show and talked about how her oldest kid, Stella, might have medical aspirations. “She loves coming to set. Linda Klein is our medical producer, wonderful woman [and] good friend of mine, and she just wants to go straight to Linda’s office and play with all the medical things.”
Years later in 2017, Ellen brought her son Eli to the Grey’s set while she prepared to direct her first episode.
Don’t worry Sienna also gets in on the fun. It might not be the Grey’s Anatomy set, but in 2023, Ellen brought Sienna with her to New York Fashion Week, where they sat front row at the Michael Kors show.
Ellen Pompeo’s Kids On Instagram
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Ellen is clearly an involved mom and loves to showcase her kids all over her IG grid. She has one post rocking some sunnies with Sienna, and another post of Eli singing some classic hip hop — the kid’s got pipes! Meanwhile, it looks like Stella joined her mom at the Good American Family premiere. Now this is some actual “good American family” energy.
