In the Season 14 finale of “ER,” the Turkish mob rigs an ambulance with explosives, and it’s not clear if Dr. Greg Pratt (Mekhi Phifer), or nurse Samantha Taggart (Linda Cardellini), is inside the vehicle when it blows up. The Season 15 premiere reveals it was Pratt inside, and he tragically succumbs to his wounds by the end of the episode. “ER” fans are no stranger to shocking deaths, and Pratt’s demise devastated many viewers. Phifer himself wasn’t surprised by the writing choice, however.
“I definitely knew in advance,” Phifer told Vulture. “It’s not like I’m flipping through the script one day and I’m like, ‘What the hell — Pratt dies!?’ We decided this was the way I should go.” Phifer wanted to leave the series to explore fresh projects, and by Season 15, “ER” had long stopped feeling fresh to him.
“‘ER’ had already won all the Emmys, been the most Emmy-nominated show, all the Golden Globes, so by the time I got there, even though the show hadn’t lost any of its quality, it just wasn’t getting recognized anymore,” Phifer said. After leaving “ER,” Phifer enjoyed a 24-episode run in the Fox crime drama “Lie to Me,” and, a year later, starred in the final season of “Torchwood.” Most recently, he played a major role in the hit ABC series “High Potential.”
The Season 15 premiere also saw the departure of Maura Tierney
Mehdi Phifer told Vulture he was thrilled about how his character died: “If there was a way to leave, I’d rather go out with a memorable bang. That’s way better than Pratt being like, ‘Okay guys, I’m taking a job at Northwestern!'” Meanwhile, Dr. Abby Lockhart (Maura Tierney) left the show two episodes later, and her departure actually was explained by her taking a job at another hospital across the country.
Both Phifer and Maura Tierney’s early Season 15 departures were related to the 2007-2008 TV writers’ strike. Season 14 was supposed to be the final season, but its episode count had been shortened by the strike, reportedly leading showrunner John Wells to feel like there was not enough time to wrap the show up in a satisfying way. Some of the series’ biggest plans for the final season, like the return of original cast members George Clooney and Julianna Margulies, had to be saved for one more season. Tierney implied while talking to Deseret her and Phifer’s departures likely would’ve happened in the Season 14 finale, if not for the writers’ strike.
Although her character didn’t go out as dramatically as Phifer’s, Tierney seemed happy with how it was handled. “It’s a really sweet sort of ending,” she said in a behind-the-scenes clip. “There’s nothing traumatic about it. It’s just more kind of like real life.”
