The Pitt and ER are similar enough for Michael Crichton’s widow’s lawsuit to proceed, court rules

Court finds ‘clear and numerous similarities’ between two medical dramas, allowing lawsuit by ER creator’s widow Sherri to go to jury trial in 2027

The Pitt is similar enough to ER to allow Michael Crichton’s widow to pursue a long-running lawsuit over the award-winning medical drama, a US appeals court has ruled.

In a unanimous opinion filed on Wednesday, a three-judge panel denied an appeal from Warner Bros Television (WBTV), which has argued for two years that the shows are unrelated.

“There are clear and numerous similarities between The Pitt and ER,” the court ruled, citing the fact that both shows are set in an emergency room, and feature “frequently incomprehensible” medical jargon, overlapping crises and graphic depictions of injuries.