Private Practice series premiere “In Which We Meet Addison…” airs Wednesday, September 26 @ 9PM ET/PT on ABC.

Producers gave Merrin Dungey the boot and replaced her with Audra McDonald (pictured). It is not clear why Dungey, who played Addison’s best friend Dr. Naomi Bennet, left the series.

“As [creator Shonda Rhimes] has said, Grey’s was like high school,” Kate Walsh recently told TV Guide. “But the group at the Oceanside Wellness Center are like a big, grown-up family. They’ve already been through the wringer together. Well, me, of course. I’m the newbie again, a fish out of water, just like at Seattle Grace.”

20+ Private Practice promos inside… More Here! »

Private Practice, the working title for the Grey’s Anatomy spin-off, is kicking off with it’s very own 2-hour Addison spin-off episode in May. The subsequent two episodes of Grey’s won’t feature spin-off star Kate Walsh .

The Private Practice cast known so far: Kate Walsh (Dr. Addison Montgomery), Timothy Daly (Pete), Taye Diggs (Jackson), Amy Brenneman (Violet), Chris Lowell (Dell), Merrin Dungey (Naomi), Bellamy Young (Kathy) and Jane Clark (Nurse).

Previous TV show affiliations: Lowell (Veronica Mars), Brenneman (Judging Amy), Daly (The Nine) and Adelstein (Prison Break).

Grey’s Anatomy episode “The Other Side of This Life” airs on Thursday, May 3 @ 9-11PM ET/PT on ABC. Here’s are some known tidbits:

• Kate Walsh just filmed this Porsche scene on Wednesday, and there’s already a promo picture for it!
• The bridesmaid dress scene was filmed last week for Katherine Heigl, Sara Ramirez, and Ellen Pompeo. Promo pic here.
• Meredith gets slapped by someone close to her (from the pictures, it looks like her father). Sniff.
• Addison will be reunited with her god-daughter, daughter of Addison’s best friend (Merrin Dungey)
• As Meredith continues to bond with her stepmother, Susan, Cristina reluctantly plans her wedding with the assistance of her mother, Helen, and Burke’s mother, Mama Jane.
• Derek must perform emergency surgery on Ava/Jane Doe, as Alex continues his unfailing bedside manner with her
• Addison takes temporary leave from Seattle Grace and makes a road trip to Los Angeles in order to visit some old friends from medical school.

40+ Grey’s Anatomy spin-off spoiler pictures inside… More Here! »

• Britney Spears Loving The Single Life
• Jessica Alba Would Make Algebra Way Hotter
• Clay Aiken:Not The Only Want Wanting To Shut Kelly Ripa Up
• At Least Sienna Miller Will Look Good
• Gwen Stefani Goes Bald and Beautiful
• Tia Carrere: The Original Queen Of “Schwing!” Is Back!
• Keira Knightley is Engaged to Rupert Friend
• K-Fed’s Attorney Denies Sex Tape
• Michael Richards Doesn’t Like Jews Either

• John Mayer told Ryan Seacrest that he’s not dating Jessica Simpson, but that he’s “having a lot of fun in [his] life.”
• Taye Diggs was spotted “cheek to cheek” with Ashlee Simpson at G-Spa last week. The two downed tequila shots and were whispering and intertwining arms for a half hour. Ashlee’s rep says the two are “just friends.”
• First daughter Barbara Bush had her purse stolen on the first night of a two-week trip to Argentina with her sister, Jenna. The Secret Service declined to comment and the First Lady’s office would not say why the girls are in South America.
• Steven Spielberg is said to be in hot pursuit of the movie rights to “Jersey Boys,” the musical about Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Harvey Weinstein and Tom Hanks, as well as execs from Disney and Warner Bros. are interested too.
• Madonna: The Confessions Tour - Live From London will appear on NBC tonight at 8pm.
• At the premiere of his new film “Déjà Vu,” Denzel Washington said that of all the actresses he’d worked with, the hottest was, “Dakota [Fanning], by far she’s the hottest of the bunch!”
• And to all you Americans out there, HAPPY TURKEY DAY!! GOBBLE, GOBBLE!!