In the hey-day of ER, Anthony Edwards, Noah Wyle, Julianna Margulies and George Clooney were the stars of the show. In this, it’s final season, the 15-year running TV show is working hard to bring back that ground breaking original cast. Anthony Edwards was first, Noah Wyle is scheduled, and even George Clooney, who has since become a mega-movie star, is said to have finally agreed to come back for an appearance. Julianna Margulies, whose Nurse Hathaway character was supposed to have been living happily ever after with Clooney’s Dr. Ross, has turned them down however.
The final “ER” season is bringing back some of its original stars for guest shots, but Julianna Margulies won’t be among them. She was invited but says she declined.
Margulies says she feels she left Hathaway “in the best scenario possible” and can’t imagine a better ending for the character.
[From Breitbart]
George Clooney, the Italian villa-dwelling, blockbuster movie-making, and Cary Grant status-approaching George Clooney, can find time in his mega-watt life to come back to the show that made him a household name, but Julianna Margulies has declined? Margulies’ last gig was as the title character on Canterbury’s Law, a show about a lawyer, that was cancelled about as soon as it started. She has one project in post production according to IMDB, and nothing more than guest appearances since that masterpiece of cinema, Snakes On A Plane.
I think the ER writers handled the Anthony Edwards return very well. While Margulies shouldn’t think she’s above a one-episode return to the only reason we know who she is, she really should have just taken the responsibility for believing she’s better than the show rather than half suggesting that the writers would somehow sully the character. I’ve officially decided I’m no longer indifferent to the woman, I just plain don’t like her.
Update by Celebitchy: According to People, Julianna Margulies will return for the season finale of ER to appear opposite former on-screen love George Clooney despite her earlier reservations.
Julianna Margulies is shown in the header on 10/23/08 at Fashion Group International Night of the Stars awards in NY. She is shown below with her husband Keith Lieberthal at the season opening of the Metropolitan Opera on 9/22/08. Credit: WENN
That’s pretty asinine – what a jerk đŸ˜•
Wow. Just wow. Margulies is an uppity diva because she has the guts and dignity to not flog a dead horse?? Her character’s ending was near-perfect and I applaud her integrity and self-respect here for not jumping on this cynical, grubby, money-spinning, ratings-grabbing bandwagon. ER is long past its sell-by date imo.
And Clooney has NOT confirmed he will return. Please God let this now mean that he definitely won’t. Don’t do it, George, I beg you!
How did they bring back Anthony Edwards? I thought Dr. Green was dead??
As far as Juliana Margulies is concerned, it’s her prerogative whether or not to return. It seems a bit harsh to decide you don’t like her for that reason, or that she’s a “jerk” for declining. I thought her explanation was fine, and maybe she’s got other things going on in her life, or maybe she just doesn’t feel like going back.
In any case, it’s *her* life…she shouldn’t have to live it according to the wishes of the fans of a TV show she hasn’t been on for nearly a decade.
And also, maybe she doesn’t *want* to work…she’s got a little one at home. Maybe she’s putting her career on hold to watch her baby grow…nothing wrong with that, in my book.
As a former fan, I’d like to have a titbit about the nurse and her hunky doc — the episode where she joined him on the jetty was poignant…
I guess it’s like having a final look into “people’s lives” before they are gone?! A sneak peek of their happy life together…
It’s perfectly fine to turn down a gig! And her motivation is sound and reasonable. To be honest, I’m glad she doesn’t milk the cow.
Sorry, I just don’t see how taking less than a week of work to say thank you to the fans who have been there for fifteen years would take away from her family or anything else. Dr. Green’s appearance was handled beautifully, nothing ridiculous like bringing him back from the dead. It’s the end of a long, long run and coming back to give the die-hard viewers a kiss goodbye would be a nice thing to do, in my opinion.
And if I’m wrong, I apologize, but it is my understanding that Clooney has agreed to make a short appearance.
Ceilidh – I think it’s still very up in the air and dependant upon, amongst other things, his filming schedule. His agent gave an all-out no and has since had nothing more to say about it. That said, the one thing that might make Clooney do it is as a tribute to Michael Crichton (ER’s creator) who died recently.
Sorry, still sticking to my original opinion. It would be contrived and tacky and I’d rather remember Carole & Doug as they bowed out in what was one of the show’s sweetest, most successful storylines.
My point exactly, Ceilidh
Exactly Ceilidh. This is not “another” episode nor the reprisal of the characters per se in a new story line that’d be carried around for a whole season.
This is a celebration of the series. It’s supposed to be a gathering of young and old, past and present to bid farewell to a TV milestone. And not wanting to do that, just for a little while, to honour cast and crew, seems absolutely loathsome.
I care for nothing more than her hair, voice and eyebrows now.
That is kind of nasty of her not to want do a cameo the final season. Considering her character was killed off in the pilot. And through the magic of television Nurse Hathaway was brough back to life. If they just kept her character dead where would she be. I doubt anyone would know who she is. She needs to pay a little repect to the show that made her. It’s not like she is no TV. She fox show was cancelled last season after a few episodes and maybe guest starring on ER would help her get a little work.
Carrie, I completely forgot that she “died” in the first episode! I like your take on her returning the favour the producers did her back then…
I agree with her. They way her character left was perfect and I think if she came back for a last hurrah with the old cast it would ruin it all. The show has been so lame for the last few years that I wouldn’t show my face on there if I was any of the originals.
This makes her sound ungrateful and selfish.
Well she *does* want to work she just had a series tank. Her reasoning is silly. I’m sure they’d allow her to come back on her own terms. Even if that means just a small cameo. Oh well I don’t watch ER anymore so I could care less.
Okay, who’s Julianna pissed at?
Could her husband be any hotter? They make a handsome couple. I wouldn’t watch even if she did come back. ER is horrible compared to what it once was. That show died a long time ago in my mind.
A painful allergy to a large paycheck ?
The writers for ER for the past ~6 years have been terrible, she may be concerned that they will completely trash her character. They did it with Jeanie after all.