Ellen Pompeo had an unusual run-in with TSA – all over a bag of sunflower seeds.
The Grey's Anatomy actress, 55, was stopped at the airport in March after she tried to bring a bag of the popular snack onto her flight.
“I had a bag of sunflower seeds, organic sunflower seeds from Erewhon, so they were probably the most expensive sunflower seeds money can buy,” Pompeo told Travel + Leisure in an interview published Thursday, May 29. “They literally held me for an hour, and they brought the bomb squad in.”
Pompeo was confused and thought it was a joke at first, but soon realized the agents weren't playing a prank on her. They told her it was likely a chemical on the packaging that set the alarms off.
Pompeo offered to throw away the "fancy" sunflower seeds, but the agents insisted she stay and wait for the bomb squad to assess the situation.
“I almost missed the flight. 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.'” she added.
Despite the unfortunate mishap, Pompeo tells Travel + Leisure that she loves "any kind of trip as long as my kids are with me."
