A Sopranos Legend Scrubs In: Grey’s Anatomy Adds TV Royalty for Season 22

Grey's Anatomy is still finding new ways to surprise me in Season 22. The show just tapped The Sopranos alum Jamie-Lynn Sigler for a guest spot that pulls directly from her real life in a way that actually sounds thoughtful, not stunt-y.

Who she plays and when to watch

Sigler will show up as Dr. Laura Kaplan, a urologist who lives with multiple sclerosis. She debuts in Season 22, Episode 8, titled 'Heavy on Me', airing January 15, 2026. That episode lands one week after Grey's returns from its mid-season break on January 8. Yes, January 2026. Plan accordingly.

• Character: Dr. Laura Kaplan (urologist with MS)
• Actor: Jamie-Lynn Sigler (The Sopranos)
• Episode: Season 22, Episode 8, 'Heavy on Me'
• Air date: January 15, 2026
• Mid-season return: January 8, 2026
• Why she is at Grey Sloan: Catherine Fox invites her to the hospital
• Key interaction: Kaplan meets Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.), who has been diagnosed with cancer, and offers perspective shaped by her own experience

The role was built for her

According to Deadline, the show created this character specifically for Sigler, who has navigated MS for more than two decades. The creative team and Sigler were aligned on a crucial point: Kaplan is not a diagnosis in a lab coat. She has a career, a personal life, and agency, and her illness is part of her story without being the whole story. That should not be radical, but here we are.

Sigler's real-life context

Sigler was first diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in the early 2000s when she was 20, after being initially misdiagnosed with Lyme disease. She kept it private for years and went public in 2016. She has been candid about how complicated that journey has been and how fully she lives now, even with the day-to-day reality of MS.

'I live a very full life,' she told People in 2023, adding that MS gave her the 'superpower' of 'vulnerability.'

She also acknowledged that accepting the diagnosis was hard, even after living with it for so long. Bringing that lived perspective into Grey's feels like a smart move, especially with Kaplan advising Webber as he processes his cancer diagnosis.

Why this could actually work

Grey's has always loved a Very Special Episode, but this set-up has a chance to be something more grounded: an actor bringing real-world experience to a role designed around her strengths. If the show sticks the landing, it could be one of those late-season guest turns that actually resonates, not just fills a slot.