[ e!online ]

by Emily Farache
Jun 5, 2001

Dr. Lewis is heading back to Cook County General, stat.

Original ER cast member Sherry Stringfield has announced she'll be scrubbing up again for the hit hospital drama five years after quitting.

Stringfield left the show following the 1995-96 season, saying she wanted a more "normal" life.

"I just felt like really working again, and it was the obvious choice for me," said Stringfield of her decision to return. "It's a great show and I certainly didn't leave on bad terms. The only reason I left was I just needed a life and I have absolutely no regrets because I got one. I got married, I had a baby girl in March. And it will be cool to work together with everyone again."

Not quite everyone. George Clooney, Julianna Margulies and Gloria Reuben have already checked out of the hospital and Anthony Edwards is making his exit at the end of next season.

Stringfield will reprise her role as Dr. Susan Lewis, a part that earned her three consecutive Emmy nominations. She joined ER after a starring stint on the first season of NYPD Blue.

But she took the train out of town long before show producer Warner Bros. finagled a record $13 million an episode from NBC, and then passed on some of the wealth to cast members, making them some of the highest paid dramatic TV stars ever.

Still, Stringfield says she doesn't miss the money: "I was happy for them, I thought, good, they're giving some of it to the actors. But I totally believe I did the right thing at the time."

ER executive producer John Wells is welcoming Stringfield back to the fold. "Sherry was an integral member of the ER cast for the first three seasons. We are delighted to welcome her back as a series regular and can't wait to work with her again."

As he should be. Stringfield's deal guarantees she'll be with the show for three more seasons--bringing some cohesion to a cast that's undergone some big changes over the show's run. Stringfield's Dr. Lewis will also have one season with Edwards' Dr. Mark Greene, with whom she'd generated romantic sparks before her character left to go home to Phoenix. Greene has since married Dr. Elizabeth Corday (Alex Kingston), so dramatic tension is a given.

After Edwards leaves, Noah Wyle's Dr. John Carter character will become the head doc at County General. The show's only other remaining original cast member, Eriq La Salle, has not yet committed to the show's 10th season. He's preparing to write, produce and star in the feature Crazy As Hell and hasn't yet decided whether to negotiate an extension.

The financial details of Stringfield's contract were not disclosed. She was making $70,000 an episode before she relocated to New York to teach acting at her alma mater, SUNY Purchase, act on stage and in indie films and start a family.

[ back ]