Patrick Dempsey officially named Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine

Gentlemen, prepare to sob your way through this Wednesday, as you may be seen and heard, but you are not the Sexiest Man Alive.

The honour this year goes to Patrick “McDreamy” Dempsey, who has been crowned People magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive.

The Grey’s Anatomy star and, if that wasn’t impressive enough, race car driver takes the mantle from Captain America star Chris Evans, who was 2022’s pick for all things steamy. The choice was revealed on the late night show Jimmy Kimmel Live! last night (Tuesday 7 November).

“I’ve always been the bridesmaid!” Dempsey, 57, told the magazine about his initial reaction. “I’d completely forgotten about it and never even contemplated being in this position. So my ego is good.”

The actor stars in the upcoming Michael Mann film Ferrari, in which he plays Italian race car driver Piero Taruffi. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival this year and arrives in theaters in December.

In our Venice review, we said that for his first film since 2015’s disappointing Blackhat, Mann returns with a passion project that functions as a classy but surprisingly pedestrian biopic. While it works as a handsome period piece that wisely elects to cover a relatively small chunk of the main man’s life, there’s a noticeable absence of the director’s characteristic stylings, making Ferrari feel oddly conventional from an aesthetic point of view.

Still, Dempsey is in it, a silver fox as usual, and doing his own driving.

Dempsey has driven in several professional races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and is part of the Wright Motorsports racing team, according to its website.

Patrick “McDreamy” Dempsey – Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

Dempsey said his three children are bound to tease him about his People magazine selection and “pick on me and figure out every reason why I shouldn’t be.”

In addition to racing and acting, he founded the Dempsey Center, a Maine-based organization that provides care and resources for cancer patients, in honor of his late mother.

Dempsey achieved heartthrob status as Dr. Derek Shepherd – nicknamed “McDreamy” – on Grey’s Anatomy, appearing in more than 250 episodes.

Other Sexiest Man Alive recipients include Michael B. Jordan, John Legend, Paul Rudd, Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford and Mel Gibson, who was the magazine’s first recipient in 1985.

The People edition with Dempsey’s cover story will be out Friday 10 November.