Crichton Estate Sues Warner Bros. Over Alleged Unauthorized ‘ER’ Reboot

The estate of Michael Crichton, the acclaimed author behind the screenplay for the pilot episode of “ER,” has initiated legal action against Warner Bros. Television over a contentious issue involving a forthcoming medical drama they claim is an unapproved rebranded version of an “ER” reboot.

According to the lawsuit, led by Crichton’s widow, Sherri, after unsuccessful negotiations with Warner Bros. to produce a proper reboot of the celebrated medical series, the studio allegedly went ahead and created a new series based on the same concept without securing the necessary consent.

TRUSTED PARTNER ✅

The new series, titled “The Pitt,” is set in Pittsburgh, diverging from “ER’s” original Chicago backdrop. The show is slated to star Noah Wyle, renowned for his role as John Carter on “ER,” a character he portrayed in over 250 episodes.

Key figures from the “ER” series are also involved in the production of “The Pitt,” with John Wells named as the executive producer and R. Scott Gemmill as the showrunner. Both Wells and Gemmill, along with Wyle, are defendants in the lawsuit.

In response, Warner Bros. Television issued a statement dismissing the lawsuit as baseless and asserting that “The Pitt” is a new and original creation. The studio emphasized its intention to vigorously defend against the claims, insisting that any suggestion to the contrary is false.

A significant point in the case is Crichton’s contract for “ER” which includes a “frozen rights” provision. This clause prevents Warner Bros. from producing any sequels, remakes, spinoffs, or related productions without Crichton’s approval, or that of his estate following his death in 2008 from cancer.

A spokesperson for Sherri Crichton underscored the importance of the lawsuit, stating, “If Warner Bros. can do this to Michael Crichton, one of the industry’s most successful and prolific creators who made the studio billions over the course of their partnership, no creator is safe. While litigation is never the preferred course of action, contracts must be enforced, and Michael Crichton’s legacy must be protected.”

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, requests an injunction to halt production of “The Pitt,” in addition to seeking both punitive and compensatory damages.

The complaint details that Warner Bros. initiated the development of an “ER” reboot for HBO’s streaming service, Max, in 2020 without informing Sherri Crichton. When Sherri learned of the project in 2022, she entered into negotiations with the studio, with promises that the estate would receive a “created by” credit for Crichton, accompanied by a $5 million guarantee if the credit was not provided. However, those terms were later retracted, stalling negotiations, which the lawsuit argues should have halted further development.

Despite this, Warner Bros. continued with the project, leading to the announcement of “The Pitt” in March, although a release date remains unconfirmed.

“The Pitt is ER. It’s not like ER, it’s not kind of ER, it’s not sort of ER. It is ER complete with the same executive producer, writer, star, production companies, studio, and network as the planned ER reboot,” attorneys representing Crichton’s estate stated in the lawsuit.

The legal complaint further accuses Warner Bros. of previously attempting to diminish Crichton’s contributions by altering his credit for the 2016 series based on his movie “Westworld,” changing it from “created by” to “based on,” which the estate claims marks the beginning of a “disturbing pattern.”