The Pitt Season 2 Won't Feature One Thing, According To The Show's Creator

The hit Max series "The Pitt" draws from some of the great medical dramas of the past, including classics like "ER" and "M*A*S*H," but there's one TV trope that the team behind the series want to try to avoid. In an interview with TVLine, series creator R. Scott Gemmill shared a few details about the upcoming second season and revealed that despite there being a bit of a time jump between season 1 and season 2, they really want to avoid using any flashbacks to show what's happened between the seasons. Considering that there's going to be about nine months that pass between the seasons, with season 2 covering 15 consecutive hours on the Fourth of July, a whole lot could have changed. Not only that, but senior attending Dr. Michael "Robby" Robinavitch was dealing with very real PTSD flashbacks from the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in season 1, so "no flashbacks" has fairly major meaning for the direction of season 2. 

Season 2 is coming soon, thanks to the success of the first season and Max realizing they had a hit on their hands, but since it can't really come soon enough to those of us who have become obsessed with the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center and its incredible medical professionals, let's dig into Gemmill's comments. 

When asked if there would be any flashbacks to help fill in the gap between the seasons, Gemmill said it wasn't in the cards: 

"I don't believe so. That's not the show. We start at 7 am and end at 10 pm, and I think that's what worked for us. It comes with its challenges, but that's also what makes it fun, because you're playing in this tight little box."

Gemmill has also said that a big part of season 2 is Dr. Robby getting himself "mentally healthy," so it's likely that he's not going to be having (as many) trauma flashbacks either. There will be some changes to other characters as well, as Dr. Frank Langdon (Patrick Ball) is a big reason for the time jump, as it allows him plenty of time to have gone through a rehab program before coming back to work at the hospital. In fact, season 2 takes place on his first day back, which means the audience will get to catch up with everyone at the Pitt right along with him, removing a need for flashbacks. After all, one of the best things about "The Pitt" is that it forces you to be in the moment, dropped into the chaos along with the team. 

Whether many of the show's other beloved characters will be returning or not is still up in the air, though it sounds like Gemmill is keen to keep around as much of the same team as possible. It's hard to blame him, as they've worked as a truly cohesive unit with both the crew and the medical professionals hired on as extras to help steer the ship. There's sure to be a steady drip feed of info before season 2 hits Max, so stay tuned.