People love the Night Shift on The Pitt so much that a spinoff has been highly requested by fans. However, Noah Wyle and co. have shot that idea down a few times now, so I think we need to drop it for a bit. Thankfully, the Nightcrawlers will be more involved in Season 3, and I have a theory about why they could actually be even more involved in the season than I originally anticipated.
We Know The Night Shift Staff Will Be Featured More In Season 3
Now, before Season 2 even ended, we knew we’d be seeing at least one Nightcrawler on the regular in Season 3. Along with the announcement that Supriya Ganesh, who played Dr. Samira Mohan, would be leaving, we learned that Ayesha Harris, who plays Dr. Parker Ellis, would be upgraded to a regular. She’s a resident on the Night Shift, and she’ll be working a double during Season 3.
Alongside her, The Pitt’s Season 3 cast announcement also included Shawn Hatosy, who plays one of the night’s attendings, Dr. Jack Abbot. If he is now a regular, that means we will likely see more of him than normal in the upcoming episodes. So, the question becomes: Why is he staying in The Pitt outside his normal hours? Well, I have a theory.
Why I Think Abbot Could Play A Bigger Part In Season 3 Than We’re Used To
In the teaser trailer for The Pitt’s third season, it opens with Abbot and Shen, the Night Shift’s two attendings, commenting on Robby’s return to work after his sabbatical. Here’s what they had to say:
- Shen: Robby’s name is on the schedule. Is he finally back?
- Abbot: I’ll believe it when I see it.
Now, I know nothing about what exactly has happened in Robby’s absence and when exactly he was supposed to return. However, this conversation makes me think that he was supposed to clock back in earlier but extended his time off. The tone the two attendings use also seems to imply that they’re fed up with Noah Wyle’s character.
So, my theory is that they’ve had to help cover him and work double shifts. And Abbot is scheduled to work a double this day because they weren’t 100% sure Robby would be back.
Remember, at the end of Season 2, we learned that Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi had had a couple of seizures throughout the day. When she told Robby about them, she also proposed that they have two attendings on at all times so she could keep working, and there’d be someone else around to both help and be there in case she had a seizure.
We don’t know what protocol was put in place after that, and we don’t know if Robby reported her. However, we do know she’s at work in Season 3, and it seems reasonable that a second attending was needed during the day while he was out. To cover for that, a smattering of other attendings could have filled in for him. I think two doctors on that list would have to be Abbot and Shen.
So, that could explain why we might see more of the Night Shift in Season 3.
Obviously, it’s unclear what exactly will happen here. However, it does seem likely that the Nightcrawlers will be more involved in Season 3 than they have been in the past. So, while we wait to see if my theory is correct, you can go back and stream the first two seasons of The Pitt with an HBO Max subscription.
