In a few months, we’ll be hitting the 15th anniversary of Scrubs ending after nine seasons… although if you’re like me, you consider Season 8’s “My Finale” the show’s true series finale. Regardless, over the years, there’s been talk about reviving what we here at CinemaBlend to be one of the best sitcoms of all time, and today brings word that the project has finally taken a major step forward. Hearing this news makes me want to channel JD and Turk and do an Eagle with someone… who’s game?
According to Deadline, Scrubs creator and executive producer Bill Lawrence has signed on to develop this reboot/revival for ABC through 20th Century Television. This had been the main hurdle to getting the project off the ground, as Lawrence already had an exclusive deal set up at Apple TV+, where he’s made shows like Ted Lasso and Shrinking. Unlike the original series though, he would not serve as showrunner for the new Scrubs.
With Lawrence’s involvement on Scrubs 2.0 (not the actual title) secured, plans are now in motion to bring back Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke and John C. McGinley, who respectively play John “J.D.” Dorian, Christopher Turk, Elliot Reid and Perry Cox. It’s also mentioned in the report that Judy Reyes, who played Carla Espinosa, “factored into early plans for the reboot,” and although she’s currently a series regular on High Potential, Deadline’s sources stated it’s possible she could do both shows.
As someone who caught reruns of Scrubs back in the mid-2000s and was instantly hooked, I’m excited that the Scrubs reboot is now finally something that is seriously being worked on rather than a pipe dream. Now keep in mind, the reboot being in development doesn’t automatically mean we will eventually get to see it as a series. Complications could arise that ultimately lead to the project being scrapped, but I’d like to think that given the efforts that were taken to ensure Bill Lawrence could work on alongside his Apple TV+ subscription-exclusive shows, and assuming the aforementioned actors are game to reprise their roles, that means Scrubs 2.0 has a strong chance of becoming a reality. Now I’m in the mood to revisit episodes of the original show with my Hulu subscription.
However, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention two glaring omissions from the lineup of Scrubs actors being sought for the reboot: Ken Jenkins and Neil Flynn, who respectively played Bob Kelso and the man known only as Janitor. Now, given Jenkins’ advanced age, I would be completely understanding if he couldn’t reprise Kelso as a series regular for this revival, but hopefully he could still make a guest appearance or two. As for Flynn, I would be shocked if he wasn’t approached for Scrubs 2.0, and hopefully he would be game to reprise Janitor, whether it’s as a member of the main cast or in a recurring capacity.
Keep your eyes peeled on CinemaBlend for more updates on how the Scrubs reboot is coming along, and be sure to look through our ranking of the original Scrubs’ 10 best episodes.
