Kate Walsh talks about her exciting return on Grey's Anatomy

Kate Walsh spoke about her emotional return to the set of Season 18 of Grey's Anatomy. Walsh starred in the ABC television drama as Dr. Addison Montgomery from 2005 to 2012.

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She also reprized her role as the character in the series Private Practice from 2007 to 2013. Walsh's character is a world-renowned neonatal surgeon who has won awards in maternal medicine, fetal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology.

Originally cast as a guest star, her role expanded to a regular as show creator Shonda Rhimes grew to love her portrayal of the character. Walsh joined the series at the end of the first season as the ex-wife of Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey).

Addison was a series regular on Grey's Anatomy seasons 2 and 3. She would return as a guest star for the next five seasons, which also included a two-part stint in season five.

Walsh finally decided to retire her character after eight years of playing her, making her last appearance in the series finale Private Practice. Now it looks like Walsh is back.

Speaking with ET, Walsh spoke about his exciting return to the Grey's Anatomy set.

“It was surreal. It was like a fever dream. There are so many different things coming together that it's impossible to describe. Randomly, I ran into Patrick Dempsey on the plane on the way back from France, like a month before I came to the show, and I told him I'd be back. He said, 'It's going to be so intense and emotional for you. When we started this show, it was a very specific time for all of us and the entire cast. It really changed every person's life in a pretty dramatic way.

It was so massive to go back and try to process all of that and then have the younger actors that are playing the interns, who were so beautiful... They were like, 'Oh my god, I watched Addison with my mother! And also to reunite with Jim Pickens and Chandra [Wilson] and Ellen.”