The most recent episode ofThe Pitthas a brilliantly meta cameo that may have flown over viewers' heads, even those who know the actor.The Pitt’s cast of charactershas been one of the many strengths of the show so far. While it’s led, of course, by the big star of Noah Wyle, the rest of the cast has been populated by veteran character actors, up-and-comers, and at least one, Patrick Ball (Dr. Langdon), for whom this is their first significant role.
Nonetheless,The Pittseason 1has been sprinkled with appearances by great character actors throughout. Mackenzie Astin, for example, has popped up as Jereme, the son who, along with his sister, is struggling to let go of his elderly father who suffers from dementia. Another is Samantha Sloyan, whom some might recognize from her work in Mike Flanagan’s Netflix TV shows, who appears as Lily Bradley, the grief-stricken mother of a 19-year-old boy who accidentally overdoses on fentanyl and is now brain-dead. But maybe the quickest and most delightful appearance happened inThe Pittseason 1, episode 14.
He Was Almost Unrecognizable As Neil McKay
Dr. Cassie McKay had mentioned a few times that her parents were coming to pick her son, Harrison, up from the hospital and take him home to stay with them for the night. InThe Pittepisode 14, her father, Neil McKay finally did show up, battling the chaos of the emergency room packed with the mass shooting victims to get to his daughter. When he did show up, some eagle-eyed viewers were delighted to recognize a familiar face; however, others may not have recognized the actor under the white hair and beard and glasses: Brad Dourif.
“A douchebag name for a douchebag guy.”
The legendary actor, who is best known for providing the voice of Chucky in theChild’s Playfranchise over the decades, was seemingly out of place in the pristine brightness of the fictional E.R. Once it clicked who it was, though, it was delightful. While most fans know him as Charles “Chucky” Lee Ray, he’s had an enviable career beyond his work in the horror genre. Among his other notable works, he played Grima Wormtongue in theLord of the Ringsmovies, starred inDeadwoodas Doc Cochran, and broke out in his first credited role as Billy Bibbit in 1975’sOne Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
As Neil McKay, Dourif even dropped a salty line that was reminiscent of his work as the colorful and foul-mouthed Chucky doll. “A douchebag name for a douchebag guy,” he retorts when Chad protests Neil using his full name, Chadwick Harrison Ashcroft III. Clearly, there’s no love lost between Dr. McKay’s dad and her ex, who is, to be fair, exactly what Neil called him.
The Pitt Isn’t The First Time The Father-Daughter Duo Has Shared The Screen
Of course, those who know the connection between Dr. McKay’s actress and Brad Dourif likely weren’t as surprised to see him pop up inThe Pitt: Fiona Dourif, who plays Dr. McKay, is Brad Dourif’s daughter. Like her dad, she’s had a lengthy career of great character roles, and, also like her dad, her biggest roles to date have come mostly in genre projects, making her inclusion inThe Pittunexpected but great.
Dr. McKay’s Big Twist In The Pitt Season 1 Episode 14 Ending Explained – Is She Going To Jail?
Dr. McKay was arrested for tampering with her ankle monitor at the end of The Pitt episode 14 - here’s what it means for her and for the finale.
Their brief scenes together inThe Pittaren’t the only time father and daughter have acted in the same project. Fiona Dourif made her acting debut in 2005 in three episodes ofDeadwood, though they didn’t act together. The same went for when Fiona Dourif played Nica in 2013’sCurse of Chuckyand 2017’sCult of Chucky; while she and her father were in the same project, they didn’t share the screen.
In a recent interview withVariety,Fiona Dourif revealed it was likely Noah Wyle who lobbied for her dad’s cameo as her in-show dad: “My suspicion is that it was Noah Wyle’s idea. He has talked to me about my dad’s career in great detail before, so I know there needed to be a device to get Harrison home, and it was probably thrown out in the writers’ room as a very cool idea.”
The Dourifs finally got to act opposite each other in season 3 of theChuckyTV series, however, when Fiona played a younger version of Charles Lee Ray across from an older version played by Brad.The Pittis the first time they’ve gotten to act together in a drama; even though it was just a few scenes, it would be great to see more of them together inThe Pittseason 2.
