Just when you thought things couldn’t get more intense, The Pitt season 2 is going to ramp up the drama.
Max confirmed the return of the heart-palpitating medical drama back in February, just one month after audiences were introduced to ER doctor Michael “Robby” Rabinovitch (played by ER alum Noah Wyle) and a less-than-merry band of overworked medical professionals at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center.
“It’s been a thrill to watch audiences embrace The Pitt as an update to procedural storytelling with a cast who authentically embody the heroics of doctors and nurses on shift in a 2025 emergency room,” the head of Max original programming, Sarah Aubrey, said in a statement announcing the second season.
What do we know about the next season of The Pitt so far? Way more than we know about season 4 of The White Lotus, that’s for sure. Here are all the details we know about The Pitt season 2, including when it premieres, when it’s set (a major holiday!), and which beloved characters we can expect to see.
When will The Pitt season 2 premiere?
Though fans have gotten used to yearslong waits between seasons of their favorite shows, Max CEO Casey Bloys promised that The Pitt’s season 2 will begin airing in January 2026.
“On [Max], we have shows like House of the Dragon, The Last of Us, and White Lotus, which, because of how they’re made, can take two years to make,” he told Vulture in April. “What I love about something like The Pitt is, I can get 15 episodes in a year. That’s a really great addition to what we’re already doing on the platform. And I’d like to do more shows in this model.”
Noah Wyle, who also serves as an executive producer on the series, is already hard at work in the writers room, telling Variety that filming will commence in June 2025.
How many episodes will there be?
As in season 1, The Pitt will take us through a 15-hour shift over the course of 15 episodes. “It is going to be a single shift,” executive producer John Wells told Entertainment Weekly after the season 1 finale. “The intent here is to let us follow and understand and feel what happens to emergency room physicians and all the other medical personnel during those kinds of shifts.”
Warrick Page/Max
When will The Pitt season 2 take place?
Executive producer R. Scott Gemmill recently revealed a time jump during an appearance at Deadline’s Contenders TV event in April. According to Gemmill, season 2 will take place over a Fourth of July weekend 10 months after the events of season 1. Oh boy.
Which cast members are returning?
Aside from Wyle, other familiar faces will return in season two, including Shabana Azeez as medical student Dr. Victoria Javadi, Patrick Ball as Dr. Frank Langdon, Katherine LaNasa as nurse Dana Evans, Fiona Dourif as Dr. Cassie McKay, Supriya Ganesh as Dr. Samira Mohan, and Taylor Dearden as Dr. Melissa “Mel” King.
Meanwhile, Isla Briones promised “a lot of antics up ahead” for roommates Dr. Trinity Santos (Briones) and fourth-year medical student Dennis Whitaker, played by Gerran Howell.
“They’ve spent 10 months together, so that can go one of two ways,” Howell added during their on-set interview with Vanity Fair in August. “We’re still roommates…!”
It also seems Shawn Hatosy will return as Dr. Jack Abbot, though it’s unclear when we’ll see him. “I’ve heard snippets of what’s going to happen and it will be a surprise—I am really excited to see him on his feet again,” Hatosy told VF. “I’m coming back a little bit later than maybe you expect, so I haven’t quite dug in yet.”
Which cast members will not return?
Tracy Ifeachor will not return as senior resident Dr. Heather Collins, as TV Line reported back in July. Sources tell the publication it was a “creative decision” that was not made by Ifeachor.
“What a blessing to be a part of this first and foundational season of #ThePitt on @hbomax,” Ifeachor captioned an Instagram post in July. “It was an absolute privilege to play Dr. Heather Collins in such a groundbreaking season and piece. Thank you to everyone who has watched & supported Season 1 & shared their stories with me.”
%2520(1).jpg)
Tracy Ifeachor in The Pitt
Warrick Page/HBO Max
This may not be the only shocking exit. “In terms of how brutal we’re willing to be, you’d be surprised,” Gemmill told CNN in April. “I think we’re very much about authenticity, and some characters are more likely to leave than others based on where they are in their medical profession. No one yet. But on the show, we may have to see people leave just to keep it authentic because they wouldn’t necessarily be sticking around.”
Wells added, “And people work different shifts. Not all the shifts are 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Just ’cause you don’t see someone in the first episodes doesn’t mean they’re not working.”
What about the new cast?
According to Vanity Fair, Sepideh Moafi is set to play a new attending physician from a Veterans Affairs hospital, while a new medical student played by Laëtitia Hollard is featured in the teaser trailer, which was dropped on August 21.
Other new cast members include Charles Baker, Irene Choi, Lucas Iverson, Lawrence Robinson, and Zack Morris.
Siren! Siren! Trailer alert!
On December 16, HBO blessed us with a full trailer for the new season that honestly kind of spoiled the stakes-heightening twist, but also gave us a much-desired check-in with many familiar faces. It sets up that Dr. Robby is about to take a sabbatical and is not so sure that his interim replacement is up to the job.
A few days prior, we even got the first 90 seconds of the new season for free, which feature Dr. Robby riding a motorcycle without a helmet, a cry for help from a doctor if we’ve ever seen one…
There was also previously a teaser.
“You guys do this every day?” Hollard’s character asks after flashes of multiple injuries and medical events, to which Santos replies, “If we’re lucky.”
What else do we we know about the plot?
In his interview with Variety, Wyle said Dr. Robby will “no longer [be] able to pretend to himself that he doesn’t need help.”
As for what will befall patients at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, Gemmill gave CNN a pretty ominous hint. “We had an expert today just to talk about changes in the availability of health care and how that’s gonna affect people, especially people of color with diabetes,” he said in April. “And, basically, if you think there’s a health crisis now, if things keep going, it’s going to be just as bad, if not worse. It’s very disheartening, and so we try and do our best to bring that to the audience’s attention.”
This article will be updated.
