Shawn Hatosy on Exploring New Sides of Dr. Abbot in The Pitt Season 2

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When Shawn Hatosy first stepped into the role of Dr. Jack Abbot on The Pitt, he had only a few days to prepare. Without the usual time to build out an extensive backstory, much of the character came together naturally as he worked his way through Season 1.

Returning for Season 2 gave Hatosy more time with Abbot, but he wasn’t interested in changing a process that had already worked.

“If it seems to be working, why change things?”

This time around, the groundwork was already there, leaving more room to dig into Abbot’s personality and the way he operates when he’s fully in his element.

“What I like about him is he’s kind of hokey. He thinks he’s smooth, but he’s not. He’s got this very much of a dad energy.”

Part of that comes through in his relationships with the younger doctors. Abbot leads without hovering, giving them space to make decisions and recognizing the strengths they bring to the ER.

Hatosy points to Dr. Mohan as a great example. While her tendency to spend extra time with patients can be seen as something that slows her down, Abbot recognizes it as a strength and understands that her compassion is part of what makes her good at her job.

It’s one of many details Hatosy has picked up while continuing to build the character. Some come directly from the scripts, while others exist entirely in the histories he creates for Abbot behind the scenes.

“We’re always trying to create something behind the scenes that might not really exist, but at least for the actors, you’re always creating scenarios and history that can fuel the scene.”

His history with Dana developed in much the same way. During Season 1, Katherine LaNasa suggested a small look between the two during the mass casualty event, reasoning that Dana and Abbot had probably known each other for years. For Hatosy, that simple choice opened up another part of the character he hadn’t considered before.

“The information comes at you when it comes at you and you sort of just experience it and go along with it.”

While Hatosy has a clearer picture of Abbot now, Season 2 also gives him more to explore beneath the character’s confidence.

Abbot is making a real effort to work through his trauma, though finding a healthy outlet is still a work in progress. He’s not particularly good at golf, and his other choice, joining a SWAT team as a medic, raises a few more red flags for Hatosy.

There’s a tension between Abbot genuinely trying to move forward and his tendency to keep himself occupied. Hatosy sees him as being in a good place at the moment, but that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll stay there.

“At any moment the rug can get pulled out.”

That complexity is one of the things Hatosy enjoys about playing him. Abbot can be incredibly competent, take charge in a crisis, and guide the people around him while still needing help navigating what’s happening in his own life.

“Even the guys that are seemingly very strong and have it all together and incredibly competent and great leaders they also need to be able to talk about what’s going on inside.”

That side of Abbot becomes particularly important in his friendship with Robby. Their relationship carries years of history, and by the Season 2 finale, Abbot draws on his own experiences with trauma as he tries to get through to someone he knows is struggling.

One of the quieter details in that scene came from Hatosy himself. Inspired by a close friendship in his own life, he suggested adding the idea that Robby would be Abbot’s emergency contact. It captured exactly how he had come to understand their relationship.

“He just is like, he’s my guy.”

Hatosy has also gotten to know The Pitt from behind the camera, directing Episode 9 of Season 2 and returning to direct again in the upcoming Season 3.

Working within the show’s established visual language comes with a very specific challenge. The camera needs to move naturally through the ER and from one story to the next without calling attention to how carefully everything has been planned.

For Hatosy, finding those transitions is also where much of the fun lies.

“It is, in terms of work as a director, unlike anything else that I’ve worked on.”

The more time Hatosy spends with Abbot, the more there seems to be to uncover. Season 2 finds him more settled in the ER and more actively working on himself, while still leaving plenty of questions about where that process might take him next.

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