Grey’s Anatomy’s Camilla Luddington Reflects on Jo Wilson’s Relationship with Justin Chambers’ Alex Karev (Exclusive)

When I joined the show, very quickly Jo was with Alex, and so she sort of came as this package deal for many seasons,” Camilla Luddington tells PEOPLE

In PEOPLE’s new Grey’s Anatomy special edition issue, on newsstands now, Camilla Luddington — who has starred as Jo since season 9 of the hit ABC medical drama — reflects on the evolution of her character.

When I joined the show, very quickly Jo was with Alex, and so she sort of came as this package deal for many seasons,” she says of her character’s relationship with pediatric surgeon Alex Karev (Justin Chambers).

Their relationship ultimately came to an end when Chambers left Grey’s Anatomy in 2019. Their storyline concluded with Alex deciding to leave Jo and move to Kansas to be with ex-wife Izzie Stevens (Katherine Heigl).

“Then we got to see who Jo was by herself and all the growth that she had to do,” Luddington explains. “Then becoming a mother by herself. I feel like it ended up empowering her as a character. That ends up being really exciting as an actor.”

Luddington, 40, previously reflected on how her character’s journey mirrored her own in an interview with New Beauty in May 2023.