About two weeks ago Max’s original series, The Pitt, aired its season finale which garnered over 4 million views in the United States alone. The medical drama, about the emergency room in the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, had been bringing viewers back to the streaming service week after week. It also recently secured its 2nd season, which is set to take place during a holiday weekend in summer.
Fans praise the hour-long medical show for its authentic portrayal of the medical profession, especially in a setting like the ER. “From the very first episode, I was hooked — the realistic hospital setting, the authentic depiction of a trauma ER, and the incredibly fast-paced storytelling pulled me right in.” Critics offer similar admiration, David Bianculli of NPR says, “Binge a few hours of ‘The Pitt’ back to back and you’ll feel as exhausted as the doctors, nurses and interns look.” Robert Lloyd of the Los Angeles Times says, “Whether or not “The Pitt” reflects the life of an actual emergency room… it has a convincing energy.”
Funnily, the show’s creators were not sure if the show would actually make it to a second season due to the massive lawsuit that the estate of ER creator Michael Crichtin filed against Noah Wyle and R. Scott Gemmill. The lawsuit claimed that The Pitt was a spin-off of ER, which it was supposed to be originally, but the script was changed during covid. Noah Wyle grew up in Pittsburgh and both of his parents worked at a hospital which is where Pittsburgh came in. And according to Variety critic Alison Herman, “The show makes obvious use of the creative team’s expertise while adjusting the format just enough to give The Pitt an identity of its own.”
The Pitt has truly been a stand out for the little guys on the silver screen. With film and television being in a confusing state where it is unsure of who’s getting it right, big studios with well known IP or independents with personal and authentic stories, The Pitt has been able to stand out and put on for the ladder. The Pitt is proof that authentic and relatable storytelling always prevails when done properly.
