For three remarkable seasons, House has relied on the finely polished interplay between the crass genius, his team, his patients, and the politics of medicine. For weeks now the grapevine has been buzzing with cast changes that seem, from one angle, to point towards House‘s usual crew of Foreman (Omar Epps), Cameron (Jennifer Morrison), and Chase (Jesse Spencer) either being replaced, or leaving the show altogether. At the House Panel held today as part of Fox’s Television Critics Press Tour, new light was shed on just what all this casting means for the format of the show.
The news for those hopelessly addicted to the formula of the show is that they will need to find another vice, and the House team hopes it will be in their familiar territory. The inner dynamic of the unique drama will be eviscerated. In what can best be described as one of the boldest moves in the history of A-List TV, House’s creative team will be rolling out an entirely new and drastically changed character landscape for Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) to play on.
If you are worried about losing Spencer, Epps, and Morisson, don’t be. They will all return, but they will be drastically scattered away from the center of the season’s action. When the fourth season kicks off, Chase is practicing in Arizona with Cameron in tow, and Foreman has moved on to head up his own team at a different hospital.
House will be attempting to go it alone, but it will be Cuddy who convinces him he needs to put together a new team. The beginning of the season will see House auditioning team members. Ultimately House may end up with a larger team. The word from the producer is that they have hired five actors as potential regulars. House will be particularly rough on his new team, referring to them by numbers instead of their names.
The largest risk, of course, is alienating fans who were comfortable with the shows foundation. The obvious reason for this change is to prevent that foundation from stagnating. In the end, of course, it will be the fans who decide if the new formula House is the wave of the future, or if House classic is the way to go.
– Jon Lachonis, BuddyTV Senior Writer
Source: TV Guide
(Image Courtesy of FOX)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
