The estate of Michael Crichton, who penned the screenplay for what eventually became the pilot episode of “ER,” has filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. Television, alleging that the studio is developing an unauthorized reboot disguised as a new medical drama.
Led by Crichton’s widow, Sherri, the estate claims that after failing to reach an agreement with Warner Bros. over a proposed reboot of the iconic medical procedural, the studio went ahead with a project based on the same premise without their consent.
The forthcoming series, titled “The Pitt,” is set to be a medical drama located in Pittsburgh, differing from “ER’s” Chicago setting. The show will feature Noah Wyle, who is best known for his portrayal of John Carter in “ER” across more than 250 episodes.
Moreover, “The Pitt” will have the involvement of several “ER” alumni behind the scenes, with John Wells serving as the executive producer and R. Scott Gemmill as the showrunner. Wyle, Wells, and Gemmill have been named as defendants in the lawsuit.
In response, Warner Bros. Television issued a statement asserting, “The lawsuit filed by the Crichton Estate is baseless, as ‘The Pitt’ is a new and original show. Any suggestion otherwise is false, and Warner Bros. Television intends to vigorously defend against these meritless claims.”
Crichton, who achieved great success with projects like “Jurassic Park” and “Westworld,” secured a “frozen rights” provision in his contract for “ER.” This provision prevents Warner Bros. from creating any sequels, remakes, spinoffs, or other productions based on “ER” without Crichton’s consent, or the consent of his estate after his death from cancer in 2008.
A spokesperson for Sherri Crichton remarked, “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.”
Filed on Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, the estate’s lawsuit seeks an injunction to halt production on the new series and is also asking for punitive and compensatory damages.
According to the lawsuit, Warner Bros. began developing a reboot of “ER” for HBO’s streaming service, Max, in 2020 without Sherri’s knowledge. When Sherri Crichton learned about the project in 2022, she and the estate entered into negotiations with the studio. She claims to have been promised that Crichton would receive a “created by” credit, along with a $5 million guarantee for the estate if the credit was not awarded. However, those terms were ultimately revoked and negotiations ceased, which the lawsuit argues should have halted all development of the series.
Despite this, production continued, and “The Pitt” was announced in March, though a release date has not yet been disclosed.
“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 asserted in the lawsuit.
The suit further claims that Warner Bros. previously attempted to diminish Crichton’s contributions by downgrading his credit from “created by” to “based on” in the 2016 series derived from his movie, “Westworld,” suggesting it marked “a disturbing pattern.”
