"Grey's Anatomy" star Ellen Pompeo said she was detained by TSA in March while trying to board a flight because of a snack.
"I had a bag of sunflower seeds, like organic sunflower seeds from Erewhon, so they were probably the most expensive sunflower seeds money can buy," she told Travel + Leisure in an interview published Thursday. "They literally held me for an hour, and they brought the bomb squad in."
Pompeo said she was surprised that the seeds she bought from a high-end Los Angeles grocery store triggered such a strong reaction from airport security.
"And I was like, what is happening? Is this a joke?" she said. "They said it was most likely a chemical on the packaging of these super expensive, fancy, organic, clean sunflower seeds. My protein on the plane!"
Pompeo said that despite offering to get rid of the seeds, security officials still asked her to stay put as they examined the sealed bag.
"I almost missed the flight," she said. "It was really like no one would ever believe this! I was texting my publicist saying, 'I might not get on this plane, and you're never gonna guess why.'"
Compounding the situation is that Pompeo is a nervous flier, which she opened up about in the interview.
"I like to hold my kids' hands when I take off, which is probably a little selfish, and they're probably feeling my anxiety, which probably isn't the best thing to do," she said.
Earlier this year, Pompeo spoke about her decision to step back from her central role on "Grey's Anatomy" after 19 seasons. The actor opted to reduce her involvement in the show, shifting to a supporting character and producer role.
"I didn't know what I was going to do," she said during a March appearance on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast. "I just knew that I really couldn't do Grey's anymore. It was to the point where I really just felt like an animal at the zoo."
Pompeo said she was a "big believer" in destiny and recalled thinking that something else was in store for her.
"I thought, if there's something else I'm meant to do, it's gonna find me," she said. "But I know I have to leave this."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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