How The Pitt’s Guest Actors Performed the Worst Day of Their Lives

by

Jennifer Christopher has appeared as a guest star in numerous TV shows throughout her career, including “The Mentalist”, “How to Get Away With Murder”, and “The OA”. However, her time on “The Pitt” was unique compared to any other experience she’s had.

Speaking candidly, she acknowledges her initial apprehension about taking on the role of Trish, a woman traumatized by a mass shooting who lost her husband and is uncertain about her daughter’s fate. “I understood the gravity of it,” she explains, “and I wanted to do justice to that because sadly, many people have gone through this.” Much like any actor, Christopher had concerns about not being able to portray the necessary depth of emotion in her scenes, especially one where Trish snaps out of her trance and cries over her past. However, when it was time to film, she discovered an unexpected issue: she struggled to hold back the intense feelings that were welling up within her.

She expresses that she was taken aback each time they yelled “action,” she explains. Admittedly, this might not be typical for an actor to confess, but there’s a certain enchantment involved in our profession. You meticulously prepare, and then you toss out the line, hoping everything will materialize as needed when action is given. Unlike others, I never found myself needing to do that. Instead, it all seemed to effortlessly present itself for me, every single time.

Among several guest performers on “The Pitt,” Christopher takes on a role requiring him to portray an individual enduring the most devastating day of their life. These roles include parents who have lost children to overdose or drowning, wives discovering their husband’s murder, fathers making critical decisions about their gravely ill son’s care, and in Christopher’s case, a patient mourning the loss of a loved one. Each actor is tasked with immersing themselves into the character, capturing genuine emotions during their most painful moments on screen. As Devon Gummersall, who plays Larry, the father of a child with severe measles in the final episodes, notes, “Working on sets can sometimes feel uninviting.” He clarifies that this doesn’t mean cast and crew are unpleasant; rather, it can be a bit chilly at times, making one think, “I’m just here to get paid.

“This,” he says of The Pitt, “is the opposite of that.”

According to Christopher, Gummersall, and others, the atmosphere on the set of “The Pitt” and its innovative storytelling methods foster an environment where actors, including temporary ones, can deliver their top performances, even when those performances demand them to venture into deeply emotional or distressing scenarios.

‘Nothing is fake’

The entire interior of the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center is replicated on a Warner Bros. soundstage. People who have spent time in its examination or operating rooms claim it feels just like being in a real hospital. As Gummersall explains, “In every room, you open a drawer and there are actual sutures and bandages inside.” He adds, “Nothing is fake.” For those who may not recognize the longtime actor and TV director who played Brian Krakow on ‘My So-Called Life’, it’s understandable. Even star and executive producer Noah Wyle didn’t immediately recognize him at first. “He said, ‘Dude, I didn’t realize it. I’m sorry,'” Gummersall reminisces with a smile. ” ‘I’m such a fan of that show.’

In this production, the lights are permanently fixed within the set, eliminating the need for long pauses to make adjustments. Consequently, the cameras follow the action’s flow, sparing the actors from dealing with static blocking. As Samantha Sloyan, portraying Lily Bradley (the mother of a boy who unintentionally overdoses on fentanyl), explains in seven out of fifteen episodes, “There are no specific spots to stand,” indicating that the environment is fluid and adaptable for performance.

Brandon Keener, the actor playing John Bradley, points out that members of the team wear medical scrubs, ensuring that even when you glance away, everyone remains in character.

Paying close attention to detail not only keeps actors focused but also serves as a source of creativity. For instance, when Trish is so overwhelmed she can’t speak, Christopher carefully observed the things within her line of sight to reflect Trish’s mental condition. In his own words, “As I sat there in this wheelchair, everything passing by, it boiled down to a simple realization: noticing a drop of blood on the floor and truly sensing its vitality.

‘That unlocked something for me’

In “The Pitt”, unlike most films and TV shows, the scenes are filmed in a chronological manner, as the story unfolds over 15 hours of a day shift at PTMC. This means that each scene reflects the actual progression of events for the characters, providing a more realistic viewing experience. The actors don’t need to perform complex memory feats to ensure they’re portraying their roles accurately based on the sequence of events because they’re reacting to everything in real time.

In the words of Sloyan, a frequent collaborator with horror mastermind Mike Flanagan, “As an actor, you can develop your character’s performance based on what transpired in the previous episode rather than visualizing potential future scenarios.” He continues, “I’ve filmed scenes in sequence, naturally, as one episode follows another. However, I’ve never worked in a scene-by-scene or moment-by-moment fashion. This approach fosters a profound comprehension of the narrative among all involved parties.

In the eighth episode, Marci Miller portrays Gina, the mother of Amber – a girl who tragically drowns in her grandmother’s pool. The narrative sequence facilitated Miller to navigate unforeseen aspects in her character’s development. A particular scene stands out where Gina whispers to her daughter, now unconscious, that she will get better; this was a direction from director Amanda Marsalis: “You should say it, but this time you don’t fully believe it.

Miller explains that this specific key was like an enlightenment for him, shaping his character development from then on. He adds that shooting scenes chronologically offered another advantage: he didn’t have to worry about sequence constraints, such as ‘I can’t do this because I did something different yesterday.’ Instead, he could maintain a consistent theme throughout the rest of the production.

‘You were immersed in that situation’

When most actors joined The Pitt, they underestimated the amount of time they’d spend on set, even when their own scenes weren’t scheduled. Since cameras are always moving around and within the ER sets, it’s crucial for character placement to maintain continuity, so they often need to linger in certain areas that might appear as background.

Normally, you’d either return to your trailer or be present only on shooting days, according to Keener. However, we were both present even when we weren’t filming, contributing to the overall atmosphere.

According to Sloyan, there were times when we wouldn’t exchange words at all. This silence made it feel like we were truly engrossed in the experience.

The team behind The Pitt takes great measures to ensure that events occurring off-screen appear genuine as well. According to Gummersall, during scenes involving his family and their son with measles, filmed in trauma room two, an additional, intricate scene was staged simultaneously in the neighboring trauma room one.

In trauma room one, they’re performing a meticulously coordinated surgery, but they intentionally keep themselves out of the spotlight in case any part of them is visible during the procedure. The following day, the roles reverse; we find ourselves in the background while they take center stage, conducting their part of the surgery and delivering dialogue. It’s truly astounding, says Gummersall.

Christopher received acting credit for her limited appearance in the season finale, as she was obligated to remain in the examination room due to Trish being parked there in the previous episode. She explains, “The camera occasionally passed by the room, and they were concerned we might be seen from the waist down.” So, they kept us present for those scenes.

If Christopher was required solely for her dialogue sequences, she might’ve only worked for a couple of days. But working according to The Pitt’s methods? She states that she definitely worked for at least 15 to 20 days.

‘He’s helping me deepen it and enrich the moment’

During each audition for roles in “The Pitt“, actors were given a note penned by Wyle. In this note, he emphasized that everyone, from the leading names to those at the bottom of the call sheet, should be ready to support one another, regardless of whether the camera was focused on them or not.

Noah expressed, ‘I aimed for a mix of TV variety shows and summer camps,’ according to Sloyan’s remembrance. And as he reflects, it seems they truly achieved that blend.

In such a setting, everyone hoped the guest performers would shine, a sentiment that Bethany Walls sensed as she filmed the scene where her character, Whitney, discovers her husband was among the victims of the mass shooting. To portray shock and tears convincingly during multiple retakes, Walls relied on Kiara (Krystel V. McNeil), playing the hospital social worker, and Lupe (Tracy Vilar) as ward clerk, who delivered the devastating news.

She expresses her gratitude by saying, ‘Krystel and Tracy gave me a lot.’ As an actor, there’s nothing more poignant than witnessing their emotional struggle when delivering difficult news. A particularly impactful moment comes when they both say, ‘I’m so sorry,’ and the sincerity in their eyes is overwhelmingly heartbreaking, yet kind and compassionate. It moved me on set, and it still moves me whenever I rewatch it – the depth of emotion behind it.

As a film enthusiast, I found myself deeply engaged in the process as the directors provided insightful guidance to the actors, ensuring they maintained their creative freedom and avoided unnecessary intrusion. During the initial take of one of Gummersall’s crucial scenes where Dr. Robby (played by Wyle) leads Larry into a temporary morgue filled with deceased victims from the shooting, director John Wells casually inquired about Gummersall’s prior experience with being in a room containing dead bodies – an experience he hadn’t yet had.

Well,” Wells said, he explained that the place had a peculiar odor and it felt unsettling being inside of it.

Gummersall notes that he simply suggested, “Here’s a potential touch of color you might find intriguing,” which wasn’t demanding a change but rather helping him to make the scene more profound and rich. That direction turned out to be one of the most impactful pieces of guidance he received throughout his career.

‘I was allowed to grieve in this process’

Everyone, at some point, has either been to a hospital or worried about themselves or someone close to them needing to go there. Many actors can use their personal recollections and past experiences to empathize with their characters. Since the guest actors on The Pitt felt so encouraged and found the scripts so compelling, they were able to access these memories more effortlessly. Keener mentions that he was able to show signs of John’s character’s vulnerability by merely contemplating his real-life teenage children and the anxiety he has about them potentially encountering fentanyl, like his on-screen son.

He explains that it’s relatively simple for you to evoke that particular feeling since these issues are concerns that you deal with regularly these days.

Miller, with two young kids of her own, found the storyline particularly impactful since she could effortlessly envision herself as a heartbroken mother who unexpectedly lost her daughter.

In the makeup room, she confessed that she felt self-conscious due to an overwhelming feeling that she couldn’t stop crying. She described this sensation as being incredibly intense. However, once filming started for that particular scene, she no longer carried that weight alone. “We all sensed it,” she said. “On that day, there was a sort of energy in the air, or perhaps it was something more subtle.” It seemed as if we were all aware of the impact our work was having.

While on “The Pitt”, Christopher marked the first anniversary of her father’s passing, who had fought a prolonged battle with cancer. Achieving this milestone left her feeling more exposed, a state she could channel into her acting. “I was given the chance to mourn during this period,” she expresses.

Occasionally, when I’m brought in as a temporary cast member, it can feel impersonal because people don’t recall my name or we don’t get a chance to bond. However, this experience felt different – it was more like being included among the regular cast members.

Read More

2025-04-11 21:55