Felicity Huffman’s time on Doc is officially nearing an end. In the March 10 episode of Fox’s hit medical drama, Huffman’s character, Joan, was forced to finally face the reality of what her MDS means for her future as a doctor.
After spending the last several episodes trying to hide her diagnosis and increasing symptoms, the storyline came to a head in season 2, episode 17, as Joan finally made the decision to stop running from the truth. With Amy’s help, Joan was able to reconnect with her estranged son, Ethan, which helped give her the push needed to realize that she needs to step away from practicing.
In the closing moments of the episode, Joan gathered the full team at Westside Hospital for an all-hands meeting in which she confirmed her MDS diagnosis and announced to the hospital staff that she was stepping back from surgery and her position as Chief of Internal Medicine. Joan mentions that she’s going to stick around for another week or so to help with the transition, meaning Huffman’s final appearance on the show is likely to come ahead of the season finale.
With her exit comes the need for a new Chief of Internal Medicine at Westside Hospital, and fans immediately began to question who might take over the position as Joan leaves. Interestingly, we might have already met her replacement and just not realized it at first!
Ahead of episode 17’s broadcast on March 10, word broke that Blair Underwood would be joining the Doc cast in a series regular role for season 3. It was also revealed that Underwood would make his debut on the show via a guest-starring role in the two-hour season 2 finale on April 14.
At the time of his casting, it seemed like Underwood was simply joining the cast as a new addition to the Westside team; however, the timing of his arrival suggests that perhaps Underwood’s Dr. Ben Grant could be coming to Westside to take over as the new Chief of Internal Medicine!
Bringing Underwood in to succeed Huffman as chief would be a brilliant move, and it’s hard to overlook the timing of his character’s introduction coming just as Huffman is set to exit the show. While the initial character description did not mention anything about Ben becoming the new chief, it would make total sense for his character to enter the mix as the new chief, as we can’t see another reason why Westside would suddenly be adding a world-class trauma and cardiothoracic surgeon to the payroll.
Ben is described as being a once-in-a-generation talent with an ego that outpaces his resume. He’s someone who doesn’t just save lives but owns the OR and is used to always being the smartest person in the room. That’s until he meets Amy, who will challenge him in a way he’s not used to being challenged, leading to a clash of the egos and, interestingly, a tease of sparks flying.
It’s certainly going to be fun to see how Ben and Amy interact and challenge one another, and the show could not have cast a more perfect actor than Underwood to tackle the role! We'll certainly be looking forward to meeting Ben in the season finale and to seeing more of Underwood in Doc season 3!