Eliza Minnick hasnt made the best first impression at Grey Sloan.

Not only did Minnick (Marika Dominczyk) basically oust Richard (James Pickens Jr) as the head of the surgical residency program, but she also essentially got Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) suspended. So when Minnick implements Phase 2 of her teaching methods during Thursdays episode of Greys Anatomy, the doctors of Grey Sloan wont take it very well. EW turned to Dominczyk to get the scoop:

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Eliza is implementing her next phase of teaching. What does that entail? MARIKA DOMINCZYK: That entails 100 percent using Elizas method, which means the residents get to go to work and the attendings are way more hands-off. Its going to be like a real trial of this method that Eliza believes is tried and true, and the only way to move the hospital forward.

How will the attendings take to the next phase? Theyre not going to like it. Its going to take a little bit of arm twisting to get there. Not many of them like Eliza.

What is it like for you to play a character who is so universally hated right now? Its so funnybecause,honestly, I dont look at it that way. As an actor, its so much fun to play this character for me, because Im not like Eliza, Im not Type-A. Im not Eliza, so as an actor, its been the best and so fun to walk in and do this. Greys has such an enormous fanbase that I wasnt aware of. I take it all with a grain of salt. I look at Twitter. I feel like it would be so boring if you just loved everybody all the time. Thats my personal opinion. I think its fun and I think she shakes it up a bit.

Do I think that her social graces are on point? Not necessarily. [Laughs] Would I behave the way she does? I wouldnt. But, at the end of the day, shes doing it because she super believes that her way is the best way. She got hired to do this job and shes going to do it. Eliza said, Im not here to make friends, and she believes that. Would she like to make friends? Im sure. She cant right nowbecause her No. 1 goal is to do the job she was hired for. Unfortunately, thats not a job people like her having.

Is she finding any other allies at the hospital? She kind of finds an ally slowly. It goes a little bit back and forth. Arizona (Jessica Capshaw) has been in her corner sort of, kind of. Edwards (Jerrika Hinton) really likes her there. The people that want to learn and progress have been a little more open than some others, but its still like treadingwater. Its been slow trying to get people on her side.

Do you think she can ever win the doctors over? I dont know if she can. Just like with the fans, theres so much history, I think theres so much history on the show within the hospital. I dont know if they would all be like a kumbaya, love Eliza [situation]. Shes the type of character thats not for everybody. Her bedside manner is not the best, so I dont know. I hope so.

Eliza clearly has feelings for Arizona, so whats that challenge like for her because shes hated by the doctors who side with Richard (James Pickens Jr.)? Does she feel like theres any hope for a relationship with Arizona? I think she does, and thats part of her appeal and part of why people dont like her, because she doesnt get it. For her, work is just work and this is what happens at work; people may or may not like it. When shes not at work, shes just who she is and likes who she likes, but not everybody operates that way; not everybody can separate the two. Eliza is the kind of character that believes that she can separate the two, so its no big deal. She doesnt think about maybe how others dont operate the same way.

Stay tuned after Thursdays episode for more from Dominczyk on whats next for Eliza and Arizona.Greys Anatomy airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Grey's Anatomy: Minnick faces uphill battle at Grey Sloan - EW.com (blog)