Co-created by Eric Ledgin and Justin Spitzer, St. Denis Medical is taking a brief hiatus after airing its holiday episode, “Ho-Ho-Hollo.” The series will return with season 1, episode 7 on Tuesday, January 14 at 8 p.m. ET. NBC’s medical sitcom follows “an eclectic team of underfunded yet dedicated doctors, nurses and hospital staff, who want nothing more than to turn the hospital into an international medical destination.” However, not everyone in the series shares the same approach to care.
Among the bunch is Bruce, a talented trauma surgeon whose lack of awareness often makes him appear harsh. Josh Lawson (Superstore), who plays the character, admits that his attitude does put him at risk of being too mean. It was important to the actor to make it known that Bruce never intends to hurt others, as his actions come from a place of ignorance rather than cruelty. In addition to Lawson, the show stars David Alan Grier, Allison Tolman, Kaliko Kauahi, Mekki Leeper, Kahyun Kim, and Wendi McLendon-Covey.
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ScreenRant interviews Eric Ledgin about playing with the hospital’s hierarchy in St. Denis Medical and creating a “will I/won’t I” relationship.
ScreenRant interviews Lawson about the NutRageous Bars gag, Bruce’s comedic relationship with Ron, and ensuring his character doesn’t go too far in St. Denis Medical.
Lawson Hopes The NutRageous Bars Become A Running Joke In St. Denis Medical
“I think the NutRageous Bars might be his ultimate obsession.”
ScreenRant: Is Bruce ever going to give Ron all the NutRageous Bars that he’s collected? Maybe as a birthday present?
Josh Lawson: No, no. If there’s anything we know about Bruce it’s that he easily becomes hyper-fixated on anything, and I think the NutRageous Bars might be his ultimate obsession. I would pitch to the writers, if we have the good fortune of having additional seasons, to continue that storyline until the bitter end. I think that NutRageous thing goes forever.
I love their relationship because I feel like Bruce is so entertained by Ron. Have you thought of any other scenarios that you would like to see the two of them end up in?
Josh Lawson: Oh, yeah. I mean, the possibilities are really endless. I think what’s great is that David, as Ron—he’s just so beleaguered by Bruce’s antics. There’s so much to happen in the hospital, but I often imagine them in social settings, if ever that happens. I wonder if there’s a staff pickleball tournament or something [laughs]. I would love to see Bruce and Ron outside the hospital. I can only imagine hijinks would ensue.
Lawson Wants To Make Sure His St. Denis Medical Character Is Never Intentionally Hurting People
“He does run that risk, and it’s something we talk about a lot.”
Bruce does all these ridiculous things, but he’s still saving lives. Do you think that any of his quirks actually make him a better surgeon?
Josh Lawson: Yes. That’s a great way of thinking about it. If anything, perhaps his lack of, I want to say empathy for other people, but maybe the ultra self-love that he has. It’s possible that that kind of desensitizes him to the emotional side of dealing with patients, which is probably a very helpful thing when you’re a surgeon.
It probably should be unemotional when you’re saving lives. You just get down to brass tacks and just remember the training and the leg bones connected to the knee bone. That’s as far as I got in my medical training. But yeah, that’s an interesting thing to consider, and I’d love to explore more of that about how his lack of awareness, or at least his self-love, boosts his skill as a trauma surgeon.
Touching on that, this character definitely has the potential to be a bad person, but then you see these glimmers of depth. Do you think his heart is in the right place? How are you viewing Bruce?
Josh Lawson: Look, there have definitely been times where I felt like we got too close to the edge of Bruce being mean. I don’t think he’s mean. And so there are a couple of times where we chatted to the writers going, “I just don’t want it to ever come across like Bruce is deliberately mean.” I think he doesn’t have a lot of awareness, and so a lot of what he does can hurt people, but I don’t think it should ever be his intention to hurt people.
I think he would be shocked to learn that people don’t like it. That probably gives him a little more latitude so that his intention is not to hurt. It’s really just kind of this delusion that he has that everyone is thinking about him at all times. It’s a really important thing to think about in every episode, because you’re right. He does run that risk, and it’s something we talk about a lot.
More About NBC’s St. Denis Medical
Created by Eric Ledgin and Justin Spitzer
Devoted nurse Alex has just been promoted to Supervising Nurse in the emergency department at St. Denis Medical Center in Oregon. She works alongside an eclectic team of underfunded yet dedicated doctors, nurses and hospital staff, including her boss, Joyce, who wants nothing more than to turn the hospital into an international medical destination, and Dr. Ron, who’s done it all, seen it all and is pretty much over it all. They’re all doing their best not to lose their patience in a hospital overrun with patients — while caring for everyone who comes in the door, including each other.
Check out our other St. Denis Medical interviews here:
St. Denis Medical returns to NBC Tuesday, January 14 at 8 p.m. ET.
In an underfunded and understaffed Oregon hospital, a dedicated team of doctors and nurses struggles to maintain their sanity while delivering care to their patients. Set in a mockumentary style, this workplace comedy brings humor and heart to the high-stakes environment of healthcare, with a standout cast led by Wendi McLendon-Covey and David Alan Grier.
- Release Date
- November 12, 2024
- Cast
- Wendy McLendon-Covey , David Alan Grier , Josh Lawson , Mekki Leeper , Kahyun Kim , Jeff Marlow , Allison Tolman , Kaliko Kauahi
- Character(s)
- Joyce , Ron , Bruce , Matt , Serena , Dr. Andrews , Alex , Val
- Seasons
- 1
