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Jodie Whittaker to join Grey's Anatomy icon as on-screen sisters for all-new US drama
The two stars are confirmed to be playing estranged sisters.
Etienne LAURENT / AFP via Getty Images
- Morgan Cormack
Published: Thursday, 16 July 2026 at 10:29 am
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While many of us know Jodie Whittaker for her starring roles in Doctor Who, Broadchurch, her BAFTA-nominated stint in Toxic Town, Time and more recently in Dear England, the actress is taking on a brand new character in an upcoming Hulu drama.
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Whittaker has now been confirmed to be co-leading "two-hander dramedy" Chicks alongside Grey's Anatomy icon Ellen Pompeo. The pair are set to play estranged half-sisters Doreen (Whittaker) and Chickie (Pompeo) in quite the television crossover, which will be set against the gentrifying parts of old Boston.
The series will follow the struggling pair as they get the surprise news that their father has died.
The description of the series continues (via Deadline): "Their only inheritance is a legacy of two-bit crime that inspires them to run increasingly audacious frauds.
"As their con grows, so does their odd-couple bond, as they each start to fill the father-shaped hole in the other’s heart."
Ellen Pompeo as Meredith Grey in Grey's Anatomy. Disney/Nino Muñoz
As for Whittaker's character Doreen, she has been described as "wiry and wired" and "as scrappy as they come". She has worked multiple jobs and has also turned to some illegal side hustles to get by. But like any younger sister craving attention, she only wishes for Chickie to notice her.
It was announced last month that Pompeo would be heading up the cast for Chicks and also serve as executive producer on the series, having previously collaborated with Chicks writer Katie Robbins on Good American Family.
The series is an original idea from Robbins, with the screenwriter and series creator having reportedly created it specifically for Pompeo after being inspired by their on-set conversations during the production of Good American Family.
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While there's no release date yet for Chicks, it's believed that filming for the pilot should kick off this September. It was also recently confirmed that Whittaker would be joining the season 6 cast of Only Murders in the Building, being joined by fellow Doctor Who star David Tennant as well as Nicola Coughlan, Jim Broadbent, Richard Ayoade, Adrian Lukis and Kathryn Hunter.
They join the previously announced new additions Jennifer Saunders, Sean Teale, Simone Ashley, Amar Chadha-Patel, Rhea Norwood, Matthew Beard, Sharon Horgan, Martin Freeman, Geri Halliwell-Horner, Jamie Demetriou, Anjana Vasan, Jane Horrocks, Derek Jacobi and Lesley Nicol.
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Chicks will be coming to Hulu.
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Authors
Morgan CormackDrama Writer
Morgan Cormack is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering everything drama-related on TV and streaming. She previously worked at Stylist as an Entertainment Writer. Alongside her past work in content marketing and as a freelancer, she possesses a BA in English Literature.
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