In a surprising twist, ER producer John Wells shared how Noah Wyle snagged his role in the acclaimed medical series. Initially, the part was already cast, but the then-22-year-old waiter caught Wells’ eye with his innovative audition performances, bringing fresh perspectives that ultimately led to his last-minute inclusion in the show, where he quickly became a fan favorite.
Before his rise to recent fame with ‘The Pitt,’ Noah Wyle was once known as one of the beloved characters on the hit medical drama ‘ER.’ The show ran from 1994 to 2009 and was one of the most successful shows of its time.
Recalling Wyle’s time on the show and how he ended up getting cast, ‘ER’ producer John Wells opened up about meeting the actor for an audition and how it all went down.
John Wells on how Noah Wyle landed ‘ER’
The 69-year-old producer recently featured on an episode of ‘A Lot More’ podcast, where he opened up about working with Noah Wyle when he was much younger and starred as one of the leads in ‘ER.’ Wyle was 22-23 around the time he was cast in the show.He revealed that the role had actually already been cast. “There was a wonderful actor, who goes unnamed, and has gone on to do very well, but we thought had the part.”
However, they were thoroughly impressed with Wyle when he came in for his audition. Wells recalled that the Emmy-winning actor had actually arrived late to try out for the role. Further sharing what it was like to see the actor audition, Wells revealed, “We just brought him back two or three times, and he was different every time and better every time, and had new ideas. And I said, ‘Oh, there’s somebody who’s really an actor.’
He ended up getting the job at the last minute. He was 22, I think at the time, and he’s waiting tables in West Hollywood.”Wells has now also worked on ‘The Pitt’, along with another ‘ER’ alum, R. Scott Gemmill.
Plot of ‘ER’
The famed medical drama series centred around the staff members who worked at the high-intensity ER unit of the County General Hospital in Chicago. Doctors and nurses all tried to deal with their personal issues while giving their best to do well in their practice. Other than Wyle, the long-running show also cast names like George Clooney, Laura Innes, Anthony Edwards, Julianna Margulies, Eriq La Salle, Sherry Stringfield, Maura Tierney, and many others.
