The Pitt and ER are similar enough for Michael Crichton’s widow’s lawsuit to proceed

Any Gen Xer would have seen this coming, because we got our medical education from the iconic US 90s drama on NBC, ER.

Which meant that the moment we heard of The Pitt, on HBO, which premiered last year, and also featuring Noah Wyle from ER, and made by some of the same people, we wondered why on earth they were pretending it's not the same show.

And we weren't the only ones.

The creator of ER, Michael Crichton, now has a widow - and she's been wondering the same thing about The Pitt for two years.

She refused to give her consent to The Pitt - and now, a court has ruled that the shows are similar enough to allow her to file a lawsuit.

In a unanimous opinion, a three-judge panel denied an appeal from Warner Bros. Television, which has argued that the two shows are unrelated.

“There are clear and numerous similarities between ‘The Pitt’ and ‘ER,” the court ruled.

It listed the emergency room premise, the fast pace, medical terminology, the graphic depictions of injuries, and a young, incompetent doctor fresh from medical school, as common factors.

“We find the details here suffice for a prima facie case.”

The appeals court did dismiss a claim against key creators of the show — Noah Wyle, John Wells and R. Scott Gemmill, for no evidence that they were aware they could be violating Crichton’s rights.

Sherri Crichton filed the suit in August 2024, months before The Pitt aired, alleging that Wells and Wyle had originally wanted to reboot “ER” after failing to obtain her permission.

Warner Bros. has argued that The Pitt is a completely different show, and filed a motion to throw out the suit under California’s anti-SLAPP statute, which is meant to deter frivolous lawsuits. 

Judge Wendy Chang denied the motion last year, finding that Sherri Crichton had offered enough evidence to proceed.