| Looks like he's staying! |
[27 Apr 2003|08:30am] |
Wyle says yes to life on 'ER'
By Bruce R. Miller, Journal staff writer
When "ER" started nine years ago, Noah Wyle was an unknown actor living in a two-bedroom apartment with a cat. Now, he's the show's sole survivor, living in a "beautiful" house with a wife and a son.
"For me, personally, it's a complete 180 from where I started," he says by phone from California. Wyle, however, has resisted the George Clooney temptation to leave largely because his character -- John Carter -- continues to change, even now as the show nears its 200th episode.
"I remember when I read the pilot script the arc was such a huge, vast arc as compared to that of the other characters who had to start at such a high level of proficiency and professionalism." Because he was an inexperienced doctor joining the emergency room staff, Carter could make mistakes, learn from others and grow.
Likewise, Wyle.
According to John Wells, the series' executive producer, "It was in our heads that the Carter character was the introductory character. Entering every world, he would lead us." Best of all? "Noah had a combination of dramatic ability and terrific comedy timing that allowed us to use him for everything. Most of the early shows, which I wrote, had his character's name in the title. I enjoyed being able to use the character to look at the insanity of the work."
Ironically, Wyle was not the casting director's first choice for the part. "We had seen somone who we thought was terrific for the part," Wells says. To please the network, Wells and company had to submit a second name -- "someone who was willing to fall on his sword for us." That was Wyle, the sacrificial lamb. Through several callbacks, however, the show's producers realized that their first choice "gave the same performance" every time he read. Wyle, conversely, kept doing different things. "Each time he came in he was better and inventive." Wyle got the part and the job security that followed.
Like the other cast members, he had no idea how huge "ER" was going to be. Even Wells -- who was partnered with Steven Spielberg and Michael Crichton on the project -- was shocked that the pilot got picked. "I knew we weren't in Kansas anymore when the Newsweek cover ('A Health Care Program that Really Works') came out. It was such a wonderful thing," Wells says.
Wyle, meanwhile, was overwhelmed when he went to the network's presentation to advertisers shortly before the start of the season. "We were standing in the wings of Avery Fisher Hall and none ofthe cast had seen a frame of the pilot," he remembers. "They ran a 5-to 7-minute trailer and the place went crazy. Here I am, a 22-year-old who had never been in New York before and they were cheering a show they hadn't seen. We rode a really wonderful tidal wave."
Emmy nominations followed and, by the fifth season, "ER" regulars were getting antsy to leave. Wyle stayed, however, because those character arcs are still pretty huge.
"There's no escaping that I miss my friends. I feel that void on occasion when a funny anecdote from the pilot comes into my head and there's no one there to share it with. But, creatively, the ensemble we've gathered is really solid." Then, too, "John and the writers have come up with wonderful and plausible twists to reinvent the guy, which keeps it fresh for me."
Whenever Wyle questions his devotion, he thinks about Alan Alda, one of "ER's" more celebrated guest stars. He was identified with one role, Wyle says, and still had a "beautiful career." "It doesn't scare me when I think about it in those terms."
Wyle has resigned for another season and expects he'll continue to stay as long as the series is challenging. Wells, too, wants to stay on board until "the creative community says it's not as interested anymore. We'll take our cue from the people we work with." Wells suspects that there are two or more years left to the series. "The final image of the show should be Carter at the desk managing the ER."
Like Wyle, he has been able to grow, too. Also a producer of "The West Wing," Wells has cases of Emmys and ideas for other, equally challenging series. Surprisingly, the first episodes seem a bit slow when he watches them in reruns. Today, "the scripts are longer...we tell a little more story. In the beginning it was so shocking because no one was used to this breakneck pace." The series stood out. Now, others have followed its lead and "ER" is delving in more personal stories than medical ones.
"Once the characters were established enough to see what they were doing, we peeled back the layers of their onions and left the hospital behind us," Wyle says.
"ER" has dealt with issues of life and death, aired a live version and given many of its actors the opportunity to direct.
Its storytelling methods aren't as cutting edge as they once were, but its stories are still compelling.
Wyle says he's more comfortable with the medical jargon now, but he still gets excited by the process. "Very rarely does an actor get to play the flip side," he explains. "I started out as the student and became the teacher."
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