Anthony Edwards never expected he would pop up on “ER” again.
“It’s not like ‘Grey’s Anatomy,’ where you can do some surreal thing and viewers just accept it,” said Edwards, whose character succumbed to a brain tumor after Season 8. “I was dead.” The “resurrection” of beloved physician Mark Greene takes place in flashback scenes that shed light on why ER chief Cate Banfield (Angela Bassett) returned to County General.
After 15 years, “ER” is closing shop this season, so story lines are wrapping up and original cast members such as Edwards, Noah Wyle and perhaps even George Clooney will help send off the show in style.
Edwards’ episode of “ER” airs Thursday at 9 p.m. on KUSA-Channel 9.
Returning to the set brought back vivid memories of those first days on “ER,” Edwards said. He came in with a box-office resume (“Revenge of the Nerds,” “Top Gun”) but little TV experience.
But they all sensed that what they were doing could be groundbreaking.
“NBC felt we were doing something different, too, because they often said we were way too different for their comfort,” executive producer John Wells said. “But breakout hits only happen when you surprise the audience, and I think we did that.”
“I can point to a lot of those big episodes, like the live one, with pride,” Edwards said. “But what I’m most proud of is the consistent quality of the show.” In its first seven seasons, “ER” was television’s most-watched drama.
“From the start, the series reflected the reality of the emergency room with a visual, writing and acting style that pays respect to that,” Edwards said. “You felt like you were watching a real world, with people coming and going, and the audience rewarded that with longevity.” Edwards now lives in New York, producing TV pilots and doing charity work, most notably building a $15 million hospital in Kenya through his Shoe4Africa foundation. His only condition for returning to “ER” was that his $125,000 salary be donated to the foundation.
Steven Spielberg, an “ER” executive producer, quickly matched the donation. Wells also donated $50,000.
Philanthropy has been a part of “ER” almost from the beginning.
Wells said the success of “ER” has allowed the show to point a spotlight on critical health issues both locally and globally.
“We turned some attention on the Congo and on Darfur, when nobody else was. We had a bigger audience than a nightly newscast will ever see, making 25 (million) to 30 million people aware of what was going on in Africa,” Wells said.
