Who is the original chief of surgery at Seattle Grace Hospital?

Richard Webber is the original Chief of Surgery at Seattle Grace Hospital. Played by James Pickens Jr., he is already serving in that leadership role when the series begins.

Webber is introduced in the pilot, "A Hard Day's Night," as the senior authority overseeing the hospital's surgical program. His responsibilities include managing the department, mentoring surgeons, and shaping the competitive residency program that Meredith Grey and her fellow interns enter.

His history is closely tied to the hospital and to several central characters. Before the series begins, he had an affair with Ellis Grey, Meredith's mother, while both were married. That secret creates a complicated personal connection between Webber, Meredith, and the hospital's past.

The wording can cause confusion because Webber does not remain Chief of Surgery permanently. He resigns and is replaced at different points by surgeons including Derek Shepherd and Owen Hunt, while Miranda Bailey later takes the position. Those later changes do not alter his status as the original chief seen at the beginning of the series.