Scrubs Revival: Everything We Know About the Potential ABC Sequel Series

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As the new Scrubs awaits an official series order at ABC, TVLine is rounding up everything we already know about the highly anticipated revival.
The hospital-set comedy first bowed on NBC in 2001, and chronicled Dr. John Dorian's rise from intern to attending at Sacred Heart. When NBC announced that it would not renew the series beyond Season 7, ABC swooped in and picked up the show for what was conceived as an eighth and final season, complete with a series finale that creator Bill Lawrence first conceived of years prior. But ABC ultimately renewed Scrubs for Season 9, which was subtitled Med School and featured a mix of new and returning characters, with Kerry Bishé's med student Lucy Bennett installed as the quasi-spinoff's new narrator.
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The original Scrubs ensemble consisted of Zach Braff (JD), Donald Faison (Turk), Sarah Chalke (Elliott), Judy Reyes (Carla), John C. McGinley (Dr. Cox), Neil Flynn (The Janitor) and Ken Jenkins (Kelso), while recurring players included Christa Miller (Jordan), Robert Maschio (The Todd) and the late Sam Lloyd (Ted). Season 9 additions included Bishé (Lucy), Michael Mosley (Drew), Dave Franco (Cole) and Eliza Coupe (Denise).
So, what can we expect from Scrubs 2.0? And how soon can we expect to see the revival should ABC pull the trigger and order Season 10? Scroll down for a recap of all of TVLine's original reporting.
The in-the-works Scrubs revival has locked in its leading man: TVLine reported on May 21 that Zach Braff closed his deal to reprise Dr. John Dorian (aka JD) in Season 10, which is still awaiting an official green light at the network.
Attention now turns to closing deals with fellow legacy cast members Donald Faison (Turk) and Sarah Chalke (Elliot), who, along with Braff, are expected to return as series regulars.
Additionally, TVLine hears that talks are underway with a number of OG Scrubs supporting players — Judy Reyes (Nurse Carla Espinosa) and John C. McGinley (Dr. Perry Cox), among them — to recur.
'My hope would be that we establish where everybody from [the original show] is,' series creator Bill Lawrence previously told TVLine, 'whether they're still with us at the hospital or not.' That also includes Neil Flynn (The Janitor) and Ken Jenkins (Dr. Bob Kelso): 'I hope Ken [who is now 84] is able to come play with us a little bit. He's a little older, but we love him so much.'
'The only bummer [about doing the revival], obviously, is that Sam Lloyd [who played hospital lawyer Ted Buckland] was such a huge part of the show, and he passed on [in 2020],' Lawrence has said. But other than Lloyd, you can expect to see all your favorites back.
Lawrence has even said that, unlike Roseanne and Will & Grace, which found clever ways to erase their divisive finales from series canon once they were revived, Scrubs Season 10 will stay true to the developments of Season 9, which shifted gears (and locations) and focused on a quartet of newbies, including Kerry Bishé (Lucky Bennett), Michael Mosley (Drew Suffin), Dave Franco (Cole Aaronson) and Season 8 holdover Eliza Coupe (Denise Mahoney). That means the door is open for any (or all) of them to make guest appearances.
'I'm not against seeing those people, and I think it would be fun to have one of them zip by,' the EP said in December. 'But that [season], if you remember, was supposed to be a med school, and those people that were going through it would then go off into the world and land as physicians in places here, there, everywhere. What I think we will really be focusing on is a place where some of our core regulars' — AKA the legacy cast.
There will, however, be a major change behind the scenes: Although Lawrence, who is under an overall agreement with Warner Bros., struck a deal that allows him to shepherd the 20th Television-produced revival, he will not serve as showrunner if Season 10 moves forward.
Braff has said that the Scrubs revival will aim to capture the same humor and heart as the original run, but showcase a version of JD who has been 'beaten down by the system' over the last 15 years — an idea that Lawrence also expressed during a recent interview with TVLine:
'The hardest part is that Zach and Donald have aged,' the EP said with a laugh. 'People still have that affinity, and love, for that goofy youthfulness — it's why the T-Mobile commercials work so well. But if I saw two guys in their late 40s/early 50s doing 'World's Most Giant Doctor,' and carrying each other around all the time, I would go, 'What the f–k is going on,' you know? To see what that [friendship] looks like at their age, and [take] a comedic look at what medicine has become since those kids started out as interns, and see how our people would look at it, deal with it, and try to remain optimistic,' is their main objective.
'I will tell you that the people I based the original characters on, like the real JD [Dr. Jonathan Doris], is still the medical advisor on the show, and still a cardiologist and a heart surgeon in L.A.,' Lawrence revealed. 'But the real Elliot [Doris' wife, Dr. Dolly Klock] is no longer in medicine because it got to be too much for her, and she wanted to do other things that are equally as philanthropic. She does this education thing for adolescents and kids now. So, to look at how the system not only changed, but how it has beaten some of these people down, and how they retain their optimism with a new wave of young characters, has really been fun.'
Meanwhile, unlike Season 9, which saw JD pass the proverbial torch to a new protagonist, Lucy, a hypothetical 10th season will be told exclusively from Dr. Dorian's perspective, and the story will 'start with JD and Turk.'
If ABC hands a series order to Scrubs 2.0, it could premiere as soon as midseason/early 2026. TVLine will keep you posted as we learn more, so be sure to bookmark this page and check back for updates.
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