When Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) first appeared on Grey’s Anatomy, no one knew what to make of him. However, sixteen years has seen the trauma surgeon engage in a love/hate relationship with fans. Owen has proved to be a kind and generous doctor but lets himself down by cheating on all his partners.
Is the trauma surgeon a good friend? Yes and No. Owen has provided many of his colleagues with comfort when they have needed it. Yet, if it somehow affects him, he goes out of his way to sabotage their happiness. Keep reading to see the five reasons why he was a bad friend and 5 why he was the best.
BAD: Not recommending Teddy for the job
The love triangle between Cristina-Owen-Teddy was seen to intensify in season 6 when Owen refused to recommend Teddy (Kim Raver) for the head of cardiothoracic surgery. When Cristina (Sandra Oh) asked Owen to vouch for Teddy since they had begun to form a strong partnership, he promised that he would.
However, he does the exact opposite and tells Derek to hire the other candidate. Owen then leads Cristina and Teddy to believe that he went through with his promise. They eventually found out when Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) discovered the truth. Although he tries to defend himself by saying Teddy is a trigger, Cristina realizes it’s because he has feelings for her. It then leads to a huge falling out between the three characters.
GOOD: Consoling a dying friend
When Owen first came to Grey’s Anatomy, fans discovered he had PTSD. The writers delved into this history during the episode “Suicide is Painless”, documenting his time at war. Hunt recalls the time when his platoon was hit by an I.E.D, killing everyone but the Captain (Richard T. Jones).
Hunt was seen to be close friends with Dan (Jones), so it was no surprise that he was trying his best to save him. Dan tells Owen to let him go, which he refuses to do. He only relents when Dan begs him to because he’s in pain. Unfortunately, the recovery team turns ends up succumbing to his wounds.
BAD: Hiding Henry’s death from Teddy
Henry’s (Scott Foley) death hit everybody hard because he was a nice guy. He also made Teddy happy, which was all the fans wanted for her. However, fans knew his days were numbered when the former baseball player began to cough up blood.
Teddy entrusted Cristina, Webber (James Pickens Jr.) and Owen to look after her husband whilst she was in surgery. Unbeknownst to her, Henry had died in theatre. Owen decided not to tell Teddy at the risk of putting the patient in danger, which she did not forgive him for. It was the right call, but it does make you wonder if he could have called another surgeon in to finish the operation while he told her about Henry.
GOOD: Firing Teddy
The friendship between Teddy and Owen was fractured for quite some time after Henry’s death. Their relationship was seen to improve near the end as both began to go through a rough patch. However, Owen soon realized that Teddy wanted to leave the hospital but was hesitant to accept a job opportunity because she didn’t want to leave him.
Owen was surprised that Teddy was thinking of turning the job down since Grey-Sloan was a constant reminder of Henry. When Owen realizes she’s only staying because she’s worried about his health, he is forced into action. He fires her ’effective immediately’, telling her that she is insubordinate and rebellious. Teddy runs out of the room angry but soon rushes back to thank him for letting her go.
BAD: Friendship with Riggs
Owen’s feud with Riggs (Martin Henderson) had to make the list after the trauma surgeon did everything he could to make his friend feel unwelcome. Hunt was shown to severely dislike the cardiothoracic surgeon, blaming Riggs for the disappearance of his sister. He believed that Megan was kidnapped because she was trying to avoid Riggs after he cheated.
Although they eventually called a truce and his sister was found, Owen was not happy to hear that Nathan and Megan (Abigail Spencer) were planning to start afresh (“Danger Zone”). Having had enough, Megan calls Owen a hypocrite for constantly bringing up Riggs’ infidelities, revealing she also cheated too. That whole feud was seemed pointless after this.
GOOD: Comforting Amelia
Even though their relationship didn’t last very long, Owen proved himself to be a pillar for Amelia (Caterina Scorsone). In the aftermath of Derek’s (Patrick Dempsey) death, Amelia was seen to struggle. She felt a lot of remorse for not being able to say goodbye to Derek and began to repress her feelings. She almost relapsed amid her grief but confessed to Owen before she could give in to the temptation.
Owen forced her to come to terms with her sadness, making her talk about her feelings. He told her that it was okay to be hurt and upset, which eventually led to the neurosurgeon breaking down in his arms. The trauma surgeon was also by her side when Amelia was about to listen to Derek’s final voicemail.
BAD: Jealousy over Tom
Amelia was right when she said any relationship Owen entered was doomed for disaster. This was because Teddy was always looming about in the back of his mind. Although he denied it, the evidence was clear when he became jealous of her budding relationship with Tom (Greg Germann).
Owen began to pursue Teddy whilst she was with Tom. He didn’t like that Tom could be involved in their daughter’s life, calling him a “dirtbag” and a terrible father. His behavior gets worse when he embarrasses Amelia in front of their colleagues by getting punched by Tom. She and Teddy deserved more at this moment.
GOOD: Comforting April over baby
When April (Sarah Drew) and Jackson (Jesse Williams) were going through a divorce, April was at her lowest point. She also found herself under a lot of stress when she found out she was pregnant, with Catherine (Debbie Allen) threatening to sue her for fraud because she kept it a secret.
April tells Owen that one of the reasons she kept it a secret was because she wanted to protect her baby. She tells him that she feels like “everything is screwed up” now that Jackson had found out. Owen is quick to reassure her that having a baby is not a mess, but a miracle. In all the midst of the drama, April realizes that no one seems to have congratulated her on the pregnancy. Owen gives her the first respite from all the drama.
BAD: Finding out about Amelia’s pregnancy
Just recently, Owen has discovered that Amelia was pregnant. Did he offer a friendly congratulations? Nope. Even though Owen is now with Teddy, he wasn’t happy about the fact that Amelia had now changed her mind about having children. He makes it about himself, saying she must not have wanted his children because that was the main reason they got divorced in the first place.
Keeping in mind that Amelia had a tumor when they got married, Owen can’t hold it against her. They had barely begun dating before they were rushing down the aisle. It was just as much his fault that they didn’t discuss their plans for the future.
GOOD: Defending Arizona in the cancer scam
One of the toughest storylines came in the episode “Hold Back the River” when a patient comes into the ER with cancer. However, Arizona (Jessica Capshaw), Owen and April soon find out that another ‘doctor’ has falsely led several women to believe they have breast cancer to charge them for the chemotherapy.
Owen and Arizona only find out about this when the fraudster claims the neonatal surgeon has the disease. When Owen sees how the lies have affected Arizona, he storms back to the clinic to confront the so-called doctor. Although he had called the police, he attempts to scare the con artist into admitting his crime.
