When Season 2 of the critically acclaimed HBO Max series The Pitt premiered, Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch (Noah Wyle) was riding his motorcycle into work, while enveloped by blue skies and the loud sirens of a nearby ambulance also headed toward Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center. For a series that spends most of its time indoors, those little moments outside are special.
On the Saturday morning of a Fourth of July weekend, 10 months after the events of the Season 1 finale, Dr. Robby is excited to be working his final shift before taking a three-month sabbatical, riding his bike to Alberta. Whether or not that will actually happen is yet to be seen, but the point is: Robby had an emotionally difficult Season 1, and deserves a break.
In the first two episodes, Robby appears to be in a better place, but looks can be deceiving. Series creator and executive producer R. Scott Gemmill and fellow EP John Wells spoke to Deadline about Robby’s mental state and the challenges he will face in Season 2, including his strained relationship with Langdon (Patrick Ball) and Dr. Santos’ (Isa Briones) challenges.
Dr. Al-Hashimi (Spideh Moafi) plays catcher to obtain a sample from superbaby Jane Doe with the help of Dr. Robby (Noah Wyle) and Nurse Jesse Van Horn (Ned Brower)
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DEADLINE: When we see Robby at the start of Season 2, he is so excited about this sabbatical. What can you share about where he’s at in the start of the show’s sophomore season and how it sets up the events yet to come?
R. SCOTT GEMMILL: [In Season 2], we’re catching up with Robby and seeing what’s going on in his life. As you know, he had a sort of a come-to-Jesus moment in the first season, where he had a breakdown and had to face up to his own sort of demons and realize that he needs some help. He had not dealt with the stressors of COVID and the PTSD that followed. So this season, is he really doing the work he needs to do to get better? That’s a little bit questionable, which you can tell in the early episodes [of Season 2].
JOHN WELLS: You can only keep it down for so long: the stress from everything that everybody went through in COVID. We want to forget about COVID as a country and as a people. I think it was very traumatic for everybody. But for the people who were in the healthcare settings, having to take care of people, having so many people die, having so many of their friends and coworkers get very ill and die, we have to keep reminding everybody about just the cost to those remarkable people who took care of us when we got to sit at home mostly.
DEADLINE: Robby looks a lot less burdened at the top of Season 2. Would you say that’s accurate?
GEMMILL: I wouldn’t say that he’s less burdened, but I think he’s projecting that. I think he’s as burdened 1768549611, if not more so. As the season progresses, and the day goes on, you’re gonna see him unravel a little more, and this sabbatical of his becomes a concern for a lot of people.
WELLS: I think that he’s also excited, because he knows he’s leaving the next day. It’s like when you’re just getting ready to leave for a little while on vacation, you’re like, “Oh, I’ll get through this day.” Oh, boy, it doesn’t actually work out that way.
DEADLINE: So, we would be right to question whether or not this will happen for him?
GEMMILL: Well, that seems to be the sort of scuttlebutt around the ED, whether he’s really going to take the time off that he needs or not?
Patrick Ball as Dr. Frank Langdon in ‘The Pitt’ Season 1 premiere
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DEADLINE: Langdon is back this season, and we learn he has been in rehab for his drug addiction and is now back at the hospital on a probationary basis. The vibe is off between Robby and Langdon, which makes sense with the loss of trust. What can you tease about their relationship, and if a redemption arc is being set up for Langdon?
GEMMILL: [Langdon’s] certainly done the work he’s supposed to do. In this situation, some people are happy to see him back, and some people aren’t. Some people feel betrayed. He’s certainly doing everything he can to try to rectify the situation and make amends. But not everyone appreciates his return.
WELLS: I think that’s a very common thing when you’re in recovery. They tell you you’re going to want to apologize. Don’t expect that everybody’s going to accept the apology. Don’t expect that everybody’s going to be happy for you. People still have feelings about what happened, and just because you went off and did the work doesn’t mean that everybody’s excited for you or ready to see you again, or ready to forgive you.
DEADLINE: In the first couple of episodes, there’s no interaction between Langdon and Santos. Could you tease what we could expect from their relationship, as they have to continue to work together after all that happened between them?
GEMMILL: That’s the big challenge. The question is whether they are able to get to a point of mutual understanding where they can work together. And the reason they haven’t really crossed paths in the first episodes is that she’s actively avoiding him because she doesn’t want to have to deal with him. She isn’t really a fan of his, and for obvious reasons.
DEADLINE: Although she was new in Season 1, Santos came off cool and confident. She’s a little off her game in Season 2, behind on her work, on top of dealing with Langdon. What can you tease on that front?
GEMMILL: She’s in the second year of residency in terms of her trajectory, and that’s considered one of the toughest years. She’s caught in the middle, where she’s not quite an attending nor does she have all that experience or power yet. She also has people underneath her that she’s supposed to be responsible for, and it’s a thankless position to be in.
Isa Briones as Dr. Santos in ‘The Pitt’ Season 2
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DEADLINE: This season, the nurses and doctors are dealing with situations that happen in the ER that we may not be aware of. Not to give too much away, but a patient with constipation is helped manually, and things get messy. In Episode 2, a penis and a needle are featured during a procedure, and these are not even some of the wildest cases tackled this season. Why is this aspect highlighted more this season?
WELLS: It’s important, and we’re not trying to gross you out. We’re trying to say, “This is what is happening when you’re in that waiting room for hours.” They’re off doing things that have to be done, and they’re doing things for us. Whether it’s your individual problem or someone else’s problem, they’re the ones who step in and do the things that you don’t want to do. So we’re not trying to challenge you to watch the show. We’re trying to say, this is what these people do for us, because they are there for us when we have needs. And it’s the things that you wouldn’t do in the same way. I would never run into a fire, which firemen do all the time. They do things that I would never do. And thank God that there’s someone who has the dedication to this profession that’s prepared to do those things.