Nearly two months have passed since New Amsterdam aired its last new episode, with Renée Zellweger’s The Thing About Pam taking over the time slot starting in March. The medical drama is finally returning with an episode that will involve karaoke, drinking, and consequences along with the medical cases of the week, but the executive producers have shared with CinemaBlend that the plan for the spring premiere had to change. Plus, there are some exciting reveals along the way, including which members of the cast can sing!
The most recent episode of New Amsterdam ahead of “All Night Long” on April 19 aired all the way back in February, and it ended on a fairly hopeful note with Max figuring out a plan to take down Veronica Fuentes with some unexpected help from Reynolds, and it even delivered some backstory on Veronica to explain why she is the way that she is. It didn’t close on a cliffhanger, however, and executive producers David Schulner and Peter Horton explained how the story was supposed to be different.
When I asked the New Amsterdam executive producers about whether or not the show has a time jump to correspond to the nearly two months of a break, David Schulner shared that there’s “not really” one for the spring premiere, and Peter Horton elaborated:
We're kind of next day. This initially was supposed to fit into a schedule that changed on us. So it was supposed to be the end of a run, and then [Episode] 16 was going to be the cliffhanger that would hold us over until 17 came back. So those were all sort of written and directed and produced with that in mind, and our schedule got turned upside down. So it's kind of just a continuation at this point.
The original plan for the spring premiere wasn’t for “All Night Long” as Episode 16 on April 19, but rather for Episode 17 to air. If the schedule had gone according to plan, then fans would have seen New Amsterdam’s karaoke night (which director Nestor Carbonell promised will show characters “letting loose” with different sides) weeks ago, before The Thing About Pam premiered.
Fortunately, fans will finally get to watch the episode that was planned to air before the weeks of break, and all signs point toward a story that will deliver interesting developments for most of the major characters. Whether or not that’s a good thing for an episode that will force these characters to deal with the consequences of their actions remains to be seen, but there is at least one thing that is pretty much guaranteed to be 100% fun, as EP Peter Horton previewed:
We definitely find out who can sing and who can't.
The cast of New Amsterdam is comprised of talented actors, but does that mean they’re all talented singers? Apparently not, but that’s realistic. After all, the point of karaoke is to have fun rather than belt Grammy-worthy performances, and it sounds like the characters will be having some fun during the night out. David Schulner elaborated on what the karaoke night will bring in “All Night Long”:
It's different for different people. You know, for Casey and Bloom, who've been on the outs most of the season because of what happened with Leyla, hopefully it's an opportunity for them to figure their shit out. Because we just love them together and hate that they are in such agony without each other, and it also gives us a chance to introduce our new characters. Dr. Mia Castries. Dr. Wilder played by Sandra Mae Frank, and Trevor [as] Iggy's new head nurse. So all these new characters that we've introduced this season, it gives them a chance to shine as well.
The karaoke night will include the newer characters as well as the longtime major characters, which may not be good for Iggy and Martin’s marriage, if Trevor is feeling flirty! Dr. Castries seemed to gain some respect from the other doctors after she didn’t betray them to Fuentes (with Reynolds as the guilty party), and Dr. Wilder’s role as the new Max in his absence meant that she fit right in. But how will they blend in with drinking and revelry at karaoke night?
And will Casey and Bloom “figure their shit out,” as David Schulner suggested? His firing wasn’t her fault, but their friendship fractured over Bloom’s decisions regarding Leyla. It may take more than a duet for Bloom to mend that fence, but who knows? Anything can happen at karaoke night, as Peter Horton noted:
And to kind of be themselves out of the work environment. Let their hair down a little bit and get to know them as people.
The doctors of New Amsterdam have earned a night to let their hair down after trying to still do their jobs to the best of their abilities despite Dr. Fuentes’ interference, and I think it’s probably safe to say that Fuentes was not invited out for some karaoke. Fans can finally find out – and see the episode that was not originally intended to be the spring premiere – with “All Night Long” on Tuesday, April 19 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC in the 2022 TV schedule.
There aren’t too many episodes left of New Amsterdam Season 4, as the finale airs on May 24, so be sure to tune in. The medical drama has already been renewed for Season 5, although the fifth season will also be the last for Max and Co, so the stakes are high as Season 4 winds down.
