Dr. Michael “Robby” Rabinovich is back for another shift in the Pitt, HBO’s hit medical drama.
The Pitt is a medical drama that follows Rabinovich on an all-day shift at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center’s ER, nicknamed “the Pitt” by its staff.
The Pitt is the brainchild of John Wells and Noah Wyle, who collaborated together on one of the most popular medical dramas of all time, ER. The Emmy Award Winning show is a hyper-realistic depiction of the medical community and the day-to-day of healthcare workers. The show has been lauded for its ability to handle the nuance and challenges of a post-pandemic world.
Season 2 of The Pitt begins streaming on Thursday January 8, 2026 on HBO Max. Here’s your guide to catching up on all of the cast and characters on The Pitt.
You can watch The Pitt and other great medical dramas on DIRECTV. Get your subscription today!
What is ‘The Pitt’ About?
The Pitt follows the staff of Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center’s emergency department as they navigate a single, 15-hour shift in the ER, with each episode unfolding over roughly one hour of real time. The series centers on Dr. Michael Rabinovich – known as Robby – alongside Charge Nurse Dana Evans, second-year resident Dr. Cassie McKay, third-year resident Dr. Samira Mohan and senior residents Dr. Heather Collins and Dr. Frank Langdon.
In the series’ pilot, the team welcomes four newcomers: Victoria Javatti, a third-year medical student; Dennis Whitaker, a fourth-year medical student; Dr. Trinity Santos, a medical intern; and Dr. Melissa King, a second-year resident newly transferred from the VA.
Season 2 picks up approximately ten months after the events of the first season, returning to the hospital for another extended, real-time shift – this time set over the Fourth of July weekend. At Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, as in hospitals nationwide, the holiday marks one of the busiest and most chaotic periods of the year.
Cast & Characters of ‘The Pitt’ Season 2
The Pitt introduces characters and their storylines within the dynamic of one day-long shift. Here’s a deep dive into all of the characters and cast of The Pitt Season 2.
Season 1 spoilers ahead!
Noah Wyle as Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch
Dr. Michael Rabinovich (Robby) is the senior emergency attending physician at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center. He’s a skilled, sarcastic and savagely honest doctor who’s still grieving the loss of his deceased mentor, Dr. Adamson, and his own PTSD from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the course of his shift, we see Robby juggle leadership, impossible triage choices and his own burnout all while swooping in at just the right moment time and again.
He commands the respect of nearly all of his colleagues, but Robby is not beloved by the hospital’s administration. Throughout the season, he pushes back on what he deems to be unimportant issues in the face of the medical care that he and his understaffed team are trying to provide.
Over the course of the 15 hours, we learn about Robby’s relationships within the department and how he interacts with everyone throughout the hospital. We see he is a mentor to Frank, a trusted colleague of Dana and a friend of Heather and Jack.
Throughout the season, we see multiple other doctors impress Robby, most notably Mel whose performance during the mass shooting saves the day.
At the end of his shift, Robby has his leadership put to the test when he must confront Frank about his drug habit. Season 2 will rejoin the staff after Frank is released from rehab.
Patrick Ball as Dr. Frank Langdon
Dr. Frank Langdon is a senior fourth-year resident at the Pitt. Frank is widely regarded as Robby’s protégé and he’s a favorite throughout the hospital. There’s no one sharper in the role of diagnosing or providing anything that requires emergency medicine, but he’s still abrasive when dealing with other people.
A devastating back injury in his youth made him want to become a doctor. Langdon’s married to his wife Abby, and they have a young son together. He hurt his back once again trying to help his parents move, and at the start of the series, he is weaning himself off of the pain meds.
His skill produces a lot of frustration when others can’t keep up. He works especially well with Mel, his intern, as she’s able to keep up with him while also connecting with patients in a way that he seemingly can’t. However, things are a lot different with Trinity and Yolanda, who he clashes with constantly.
Throughout the season, Frank struggles to wean himself completely off the pain meds, which leads to Robby finding pain med doses in his locker and putting Frank on leave. In season two, we’ll pick up with Langdon’s first day back on the job after rehab.
Katherine LaNasa as Dana Evans
Dana Evans is the charge nurse at the Pitt. Her job is to control the chaos of the emergency department, which she does with a commanding presence and a no-nonsense attitude. She is trusted and often turned to for a whole host of professional and personal issues within the department. In essence, she makes the entire emergency department go.
Dana has 30 years of experience as a nurse and knows more than most doctors. She takes on the role of leader, trusted friend, mentor, and compassionate caregiver all at once for the entire staff. Throughout the first season, she toys with the idea of retirement as the emotional toll of the job weighs heavily.
Supriya Ganesh as Dr. Samira Mohan
Samira is a senior resident at the Pitt. She’s methodical and empathetic, which makes her a favorite of patients, but she often struggles to operate at the speed her superiors want her to, which earned her the nickname “Slow Mo.”
Samira got into medicine after her father died at a young age. She is dedicated to bringing social justice to the field of medicine, paying particular attention to the outcomes of patients of color and the unique health issues that they face.
She gets along well with Melissa, but has a rockier relationship with Robby, who wants her to move faster. She’s still struggling to find her footing in the medical field, especially as her approach can sometimes hinder her ability to collaborate with others.
Samira and Mel worked together at the VA hospital. Her attention to detail with patients of color allows her to diagnose sickle cell disease in a patient when others assumed it was drug-seeking behavior.
Fiona Dourif as Dr. Cassie McKay
Cassie McKay is a second-year resident at the Pitt. She’s a former addict working to rebuild her life and balances the demands of being a single mother on top of her work in the ER. Her past allows her to connect with patients in a way that her colleagues can’t.
She is deeply shaped by her past. After losing custody of her son, she got clean, pursued medical school and is now dedicated to helping people avoid the same traps that she did.
Though McKay and Robbie butt heads, there is a deep mutual respect between the two. McKay has a great mentor relationship with Victoria Javadi, who she takes under her wing on Victoria’s first day in the department.
Taylor Dearden as Dr. Melissa “Mel” King
Melissa – better known as Mel – is a second-year resident at the Pitt who works under Frank and Robby. As a neurodivergent doctor, she brings a unique perspective to the ER. She is kind and deeply empathetic, often picking up on subtle emotional cues others miss, though there are moments when she is less aware of certain social dynamics.
Mel was inspired to pursue medicine by her twin sister, who is on the autism spectrum, and she remains a strong advocate for autism awareness. Since their mother’s death, Mel has balanced the demands of residency with caring for her sister. That responsibility, combined with her high emotional intelligence and dedication to self-soothing and grounding practices, allows her to remain steady even in the most high-pressure situations, including mass-casualty events.
Before arriving at the Pitt, Mel worked at a VA hospital, an experience she credits with helping her maintain perspective under stress. Throughout the shift, she assists Langdon and Robby on numerous cases and proves especially vital during the influx of patients near the end of the season.
Isa Briones as Dr. Trinity Santos
Dr. Trinity Santos is a first-year resident at the Pitt. She’s brash, bold and ready to sling sarcasm at anyone in her path. A former athlete, she doesn’t shy away from confrontation and conflict, which can sometimes get her into trouble by overstepping with her superiors and bristling her colleagues.At the same time, she is a compassionate doctor and friend: when she finds that Whitaker is living in the hospital, she offers him a spare room to live in.
She is the one who finds that Frank has been stealing medication. In Season 2, she’ll need to find a way to work together with Frank again.
Gerran Howell as Dennis Whitaker
Dennis Whitaker is a 4th year medical student doing an ER rotation at the Pitt. Whitaker is from a small town in Nebraska, which he left – along with the family farm – to try to become a doctor. Though skittish and nervous, Whitaker is devoted to medicine, but is certainly feeling the stress of both the job and the financial weight of his medical school loans.
Whitaker has incredible compassion, connecting with an unhoused patient and helping coax Dr. Robbie out of a panic attack. At the end of the season, Santos finds out that he’s been squatting in an unused wing at the hospital and offers him a room in her place, which he graciously accepts.
Shabana Azeez as Victoria Javadi
Victoria is a third-year medical student who is a brilliant academic and the daughter of two doctors. She’s now at a place in her career where she is looking to break free of the pressures of school, the expectations of her parents and the doubts of those who think she is too sheltered. Of course, it doesn’t help that her mother works at the same hospital.
Victoria starts the season working closely with McKay, whose past with substance abuse and current ankle-bracelet monitoring offer a stark contrast from the people she is used to working and interacting with. While they experience their missteps, they get along well.
Things are a little icier with Santos. Their personalities are at complete odds in their routine interactions, but when faced with a challenge, their complementary skillsets form a dynamic team.
Recurring Cast & Characters of ‘The Pitt’ Season 2
From recurring doctors to nurses, staff and hospital regulars, here are the recurring characters in the second season of The Pitt.
Amielynn Abellera as Perlah Alawi
Perlah is a nurse on the day shift and essentially the right hand to Dana as the charge nurse. She’s dependable, quick-witted and principled.
She and Princess are especially close as the only Filipina nurses on the staff. They vent and gossip in Tagalog to avoid detection.
Brandon Mendez Homer as Donnie Donahue
Donnie, a Nurse Practitioner, is the bridge between the members of the Pitt that have been around for a while and those that are just starting. He’s got the respect of everyone, especially Robby.
Kristin Villanueva as Princess Dela Cruz
Princess, a nurse in the Pitt, brings a cuttingly dry sense of humor to the day shift. As the only ones who can speak Tagalog, she and Perlah quickly bonded.
Ned Brower as Jesse Van Horn
Jesse bounces around multiple cases throughout the day including with Dr. King, who awkwardly forgets his name after they stabilize a patient’s leg.
Krystel Mcneil as Kiara Alfaro
Kiara is the hospital social worker. If there is a difficult conversation that needs to be had with a patient, she’s there.
Shawn Hatosy as Dr. Jack Abbott
Abbot starts Season 1 looking forward to clocking out from the night shift and enjoying a rare day off. Jack and Robby share a deep respect for one another; they’re both veteran doctors powering through decades of traumatic memories in the ER. When a crisis pulls him back into the hospital, Jack’s calm decisiveness and steady leadership become crucial to keeping the team grounded under pressure.
A former military medic, he brings resilience and quiet confidence to emergency care, even as he carries his own emotional and physical scars. His return in Season 2 has been widely anticipated by fans, and Hatosy’s performance in The Pitt earned him a nomination Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.
New Cast Members for ‘The Pitt’ Season 2
Sepiideh Moafi as Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi
At the end of the season, Dr. Baran al-Hashimi enters Season 2 as a former colleague of Mel and Samira at the VA hospital. She’s starting a new role as an attending physician at the Pitt.
Meta Golding as Noelle Hastings
Meta Golding plays Noelle Hastings, a nurse and case manager at the Pitt.
Christopher Thornton as Dr. Caleb Jefferson
Dr. Caleb Jefferson, portrayed by Christopher Thornton, is a Psychiatric Attending who becomes involved in Season 2 after conducting an assessment of Evelyn Bostick, a widow with Alzheimer’s.
Luke Tennie as Dr. Crus Henderson
Dr. Crus Henderson is a fourth-year resident working the night shift at the Pitt.
The Pitt Season 2 Patient Cast List
Curious who you’ll be seeing on the other end of ER experience in The Pitt’s Season 2? Here is the cast list for the patients:
Travis Van Winkle as Curtis Larson
Travis Van Winkle plays Curtis Larson, an aggressive and volatile patient who arrives at the Pitt during the chaos of Fourth of July weekend.
Jayne Taini as Evelyn Bostick
Jayne Taini portrays Evelyn Bostick, an 81-year-old patient with Alzheimer’s whose emergency visit brings emotional weight and ethical complexity to the ER in Season 2.
Brittany Allen as Roxie Hamler
Brittany Allen plays Roxie Hamler, a patient whose medical crisis is deeply intertwined with her family, escalating tensions and creating more complications.
Taylor Handley as Paul Hamler
Taylor Handley appears as Paul Hamler, a distressed family member whose reactions to his loved one’s condition add pressure to an already overwhelming shift.
Bonita Friedericy as Cora Wilkins
Bonita Friedericy portrays Cora Wilkins, a patient whose presence in the ER underscores the emotional toll emergency medicine takes on both patients and providers.
Jeff Kober as Duke
Jeff Kober plays Duke, a difficult and unpredictable patient whose confrontational behavior complicates care during one of the hospital’s busiest days.
Zack Morris as Jackson Davis
Zack Morris plays Jackson Davis, a patient brought to the emergency department after an uncontrollable outburst in a college library.
Did Tracy Ifeachor Leave ‘The Pitt’?
Dr. Heather Collins, portrayed by Tracy Ifeachor, was introduced in The Pitt Season 1 as a senior resident in emergency medicine at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, known for her cool head under pressure and strong clinical skills. She also shared a complicated past and intermittent romantic relationship with Dr. Robby, adding emotional depth to the show’s intense real-time format.
In July 2025, it was confirmed that Ifeachor would not return for Season 2 of the HBO Max medical drama. Reports indicate that this was due to creative decisions by the show’s producers.
On screen, the time jump between seasons and the teaching hospital setting provided a natural narrative context for Collins’ absence, with new characters stepping into attending roles in Season 2’s Fourth of July shift.
Watch ‘The Pitt’ on DIRECTV
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who are the new cast members of The Pitt Season 2?
Dr. Buran al-Hashimi enters Season 2 as a former colleague of Mel and Samira at the VA hospital. He's a new attending physician.
Who plays Dr. McKay's ex-husband on The Pitt?
Dr. McKay's ex-husband Chad Ashcroft is played by English actor Rob Heaps.
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