ER

Last Thursday, ER's first new episode for the year aired, and it featured the special one-time guest appearance of actress Gloria Reuben as Jeanie Boulet.  Several years have passed since Reuben last played the HIV-stricken physician's assistant, but the actress had no trouble easing back into the role.

“It just felt incredible… It really felt kind of great to step back into the shoes of Jeanie,” Reuben, who is an AIDS activist in real life, told the Los Angeles Times.  "Of course, there was a lot of apprehension and anxiety, like returning home after not having been there for so many years.  I didn't know what to expect.  But when I got there, it was like no time had gone by at all."

When Gloria Reuben's Jeanie left ER, she was still adjusting to her HIV status.  Thursday's episode showed Jeanie as a divorced mother who runs two AIDS clinics. When her adopted son, who also has HIV, is injured during gym class, she takes him to the hospital, where she clashes with Dr. Gregory Pratt (Mekhi Phifer).  Although her son appears to be alright initially, a CT scan reveals a growth in his brain, a usual sign that the virus has progressed into AIDS.

Reuben's return to ER was the result of a recent conversation she had with executive producer John Wells.

"We were catching up on things, and I was talking about my HIV activism in the last few years," she said.  "We realized we had really done some great stuff on the show in terms of bringing this to the forefront of people's lives.  In recent years, that issue seems to have slipped off the radar, so it's great to get back into it again."

Producer Christopher Chulack had this to say about Gloria Reubens ER comeback: “[It's] pleasantly odd.  I can't think of another situation where you're around after 10 years and you get to revisit something.  It was just so great to see her and see how she has matured.  The character has matured like she has.”


-Lisa Claustro, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: The Los Angeles Times
(Image Courtesy of NBC)