‘The Pitt’ Aftershow: Shawn Hatosy Details Directing Starting to See ‘Cracks in Robby’ (VIDEO)

As The Pitt nears the end of the Fourth of July shift — it’s 3:00 p.m. in the Thursday, March 5, episode — it’s getting closer to Robby’s (Noah Wyle) sabbatical, and so, as Shawn Hatosy, who directed this hour, tells us, it’s “the beginning of his goodbye parade.” And because of that, we’re beginning to see even more reason to be worried about him.

Elsewhere in the episode, it’s time for King’s (Taylor Dearden) deposition regarding the kid with measles from Season 1, just as a patient close to her arrives at PTMC. Plus, the staff, in the final moments, learn of an incident that could mean multiple patients heading their way. Shawn Hatosy, Supriya Ganesh, and Laëtitia Hollard break down the key moments of the “3:00 P.M.” hour of the Fourth of July shift for the latest Post-Op: The Pitt Aftershow. Warning: Spoilers for The Pitt Season 2 Episode 9 ahead!

When Abbot’s heading out before he has to be back for his night shift, he and Robby say goodbye, in case they don’t see each other again. Abbot remarks that he can’t remember the last time that Robby took three days off in a row. (He’s said he’s going to be gone for three months.) Robby insists he’s taken a vacation before but can’t say when when pressed. “It’s going to be a lot of time to self-reflect,” Abbot notes, checking, “Sure you can handle that?” Robby doesn’t really answer. “Just make sure you come back, and if it gets dark, you call me,” Abbot says, making sure he’s listening.

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“So much of directing with Noah when he’s involved is really just following his instincts because nobody understands the show, nobody understands the character in the scenes more than Noah,” Hatosy tells TV Insider of that scene in the video aftershow interview above. “So, I relied heavily on what he brought to it. We did talk about that being the beginning of his goodbye parade, so there was a little bit of a discussion about how to sort of highlight that, and I think obviously his emotion was heightened there, but also the reaction that Abbot gives as he’s walking away.”

That conversation leads directly into the next one, during which Robby talks to Whitaker (Gerran Howell) about the time he’s spending with the widow of the burn victim in Season 1 then asks him to housesit for him while he’s gone. Most notably, Robby ends that conversation by telling Whitaker that if he doesn’t come back, he has a bachelor pad.

“It’s the beginning of us, the audience seeing cracks in Robby,” notes Hatosy. “It’s the first time he reveals that he might not be coming back, and it’s almost, I don’t want to say unhinged, but his energy is a little off there. It’s the beginning of what we’re going to see unfold as we get to the end of Season 2.”

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That specific line, about him saying he might not come back, was one they discussed “a lot,” the Emmy winner and director shares. “Is this a joke? Is this a moment of saying something that you shouldn’t have said? It was a real chance to sort of, with Noah, kind of give ourselves options, and I really enjoyed that day.”

Elsewhere in the episode, King’s about to go to her deposition when her sister, Becca (Tal Anderson), comes in. She chooses Langdon (Patrick Ball) to step in for her, and he’s great with Becca — who tells him that her sister says a lot of nice things about him. Plus, when Santos (Isa Briones) checks in with Garcia (Alexandra Metz) to see if she still needs a raincheck for that night, the surgeon reminds her that they’re just keeping it casual. (Aww, poor Santos.) Then, the episode ends with a news report of a slide collapse at the water park. There’s already at least one fatality and multiple injuries. With Westside closed, PTMC knows they’re all heading their way.

Watch the full Post-Op: The Pitt Aftershow above for more from Shawn Hatosy, Supriya Ganesh, and Laëtitia Hollard breaking down Season 2 Episode 9 — including about Abbot doing nude yoga at sunrise.

The Pitt, Thursdays, 9/8c, HBO Max