For eight seasons, House took over the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey. The medical drama ran from 2004 to 2012 with the House cast of characters led by Dr. Gregory House, played brilliantly by Hugh Laurie, displaying unconventional diagnostic yet genius methods to solve complex medical cases with his team — and with his cane.
His anti-social behavior and penchant for pain killers, mixed in with wittiness and arrogance, was the core of House’s bad boy personality. Much of his hypotheses about patients’ illnesses were based on subtle or controversial intuitions, which led him to clash with his fellow doctors.
House’s investigatory method proved itself to be similar to fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, this due to series creator David Shore’s fascination with the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle character. Both characters play instruments, take drugs and House’s relationship with Dr. James Wilson echoes that between Holmes and Dr. John Watson.
The show — and the House cast — received high critical acclaim and was loved by its millions of viewers from all over the world, having been distributed to 71 countries, making it the most watched television program in the world in 2008.
House cast then and now
Let’s take a look at the House cast, whose characters attempted to cure complex and rare diseases from very ill ordinary people. Where are they now?
Hugh Laurie as Dr. Gregory House
James Hugh Calum Laurie was born on June 11, 1959 in Oxford, England; his father a real-life doctor and also an Olympic gold medalist in rowing. Laurie himself pursued rowing at Selwyn College, but during a bout of glandular fever, he was forced to abandon the sport and joined the Cambridge Footlights, a university drama club where he met actress Emma Thompson. The two became a couple and still remain good friends.
A fortuitous introduction to Stephen Fry by Thompson in 1980 helped form the comedy duo act Fry and Laurie. The two performed together during the 80s and 90s, participating in charity stage events such as Hysterical, Comic Relief and other TV and variety shows.
From 1986 to 1989 they appeared in three series (the British term for seasons) of the British comedy Blackadder, while their next collaboration, on the Thames Television film Letters from a Bomber Pilot, was quite different and far more serious. The film was based on the letters that Pilot Officer J.R.A. Bob Hdgson wrote home before he was killed in action in 1943.
But it was being cast as Dr. Gregory House — lead of the House cast — that put his star into the stratosphere. He received two Golden Globes and many other accolades for his role and was listed in the 2011 Guinness World Records as the most watched leading man on television. Laurie auditioned for the part of Dr. House via video shot in a hotel bathroom in Namibia, where he was shooting Flight of the Phoenix. “It was the only place with enough light”.
The audition wasn’t an easy one. “It’s difficult performing with an American accent,” Laurie has said. “It’s as if you’re playing left-handed. Or like everyone else is playing with a tennis racket and you have a salmon.”
Was he shocked at the success of House? “I still am! There are a lot of days when I feel as if I have been woken from a coma and told six years have gone by and I have no awareness of it. Do we still drive on the left? Do we still have pounds? And I still like House very, very much. He is not necessarily a good man, but I realized long ago that one doesn’t only like good people.”
Other television credits include appearing in the London based Friends episode, The Night Manager, for which he won his third Golden Globe; and on HBO’s Veep. Films are also in abundance on his resume: Peter’s Friends, Sense and Sensibility, 101 Dalmatians, The Man in the Iron Mask, Stuart Little, The Spice Girl’s Spice World, and many more.
Laurie has another passion outside of acting: Music! The actor took piano lessons from the age of six and plays piano, guitar, drums, harmonica and saxophone. Throughout his acting career, he has displayed his musical talents such as when he hosted Saturday Night Live in 2006.
He has released two blues albums, both receiving favorable reviews and Laurie’s love for jazz and playing the piano was even incorporated into House’s own musical accomplishments. Laurie also lent his celebrity to music videos such as in the 1992 Annie Lennox single “Walking on Broken Glass,” complete in British Regency period costume alongside John Malkovich. He also found time to write the novel The Gun Seller in 1996.
Omar Epps as Dr. Eric Foreman
Omar Epps began writing poetry, short stories and songs at the age of ten. Born in Brooklyn, New York on July 20, 1973, Epps attended the prestigious LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, a highly selective place of learning for students with talent.
Epps was no stranger to the big or small screen at the time of joining the House cast as Dr. Eric Foreman. He made his feature film debut playing a DJ alongside rapper Tupac Shakur in Juice, followed by several roles as an athlete. He appeared in lead roles in such films as Against the Ropes opposite Meg Ryan, Alfie opposite Jude Law and Susan Sarandon, In Too Deep, Higher Learning and more.
His supporting roles include Major League II opposite Charlie Sheen, The Program with Halle Berry, and Breakfast of Champions with Bruce Willis and Nick Nolte. Omar has starred in three HBO Original movies, First Time Felon, Deadly Voyage and Daybreak.
One of the most talked about departures from a TV series was Epps’ as surgical resident Dr. Dennis Gant on ER, which left audiences wondering if his character committed suicide or not.
His critically acclaimed role on House garnered him an NAACP Image Award for two years in a row. Epps currently co-stars on Starz Power Book III.
Related: Cast of ‘ER’ Then and Now: Catch Up With the Stars of the Iconic Medical Drama
Lisa Edelstein as Dr. Lisa Cuddy
Lisa Edelstein is not a doctor, which she played for seven years as part of the House cast, and she is not a divorced middle-aged woman as she portrayed in Bravo’s Girlfriends Guide to Divorce. Yet Edelstein has the feisty, independent streak both onscreen women possess.
“Every new phase in life is born out of accomplishments and rife with new challenges,” she has said. “I try and stay willing to participate with energy and focus, with joy for what I do and with a ton of gratitude for still being here.”
Born in Boston on May 21, 1966, Edelstein began to make her own distinctive choices early on. She moved to New York City to pursue acting and became a regular on the New York party scene, the socialite once referred to by the New York Times as “New York’s reigning Queen of the Night, Girl of the Moment.”
Giving up her nighttime activities, Edelstein received her SAG card appearing as a backstage makeup artist in the feature The Doors, and then landed a quick series of guest roles on many popular comedies, including Mad About You, Sports Night and — perhaps most famous from this time — Seinfeld, where she played George Costanza’s girlfriend.
No stranger to fearless and even iconic TV roles, she was Rob Lowe’s call girl girlfriend on West Wing, transsexual Cindy on Ally McBeal and the first out-lesbian on network TV in Relativity.
Perhaps her biggest role was as Dr. Lisa Cuddy, the Dean of Medicine, on House. She was the frequent adversary, friend and eventual girlfriend of House, her responsibility, it seemed, to play the grown-up foil to the ragamuffin Dr. House.
The role garnered Edelstein the People’s Choice Award for Favorite TV Actress. In May 2011, Edelstein announced she would not be returning to the House cast and, since leaving the show in its penultimate season, she landed recurring roles on seven different TV series and joined the cast of The Good Wife just a month after her House departure.
Edelstein also lends her voice to shows such as American Dad, King of the Hill and Justice League. During any downtime that she has, the actress volunteers her time with a variety of charity organization, including Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, The Anti-Defamation League, Planned Parenthood and The Center for Reproductive Rights.
She lives a full life and still considers herself a work in progress, musing. “I think once you stop considering yourself a work in progress, you die.”
Robert Sean Leonard as Dr. James Wilson in House cast
Known by most as Dr. Wilson on House and his most recent role on HBO’s The Gilded Age as Rev. Luke Forte, Robert Sean Leonard’s career has spanned a number of classic films and noted television roles.
Born Robert Lawrence Leonard on February 28, 1969 in New Jersey, he attended Columbia University. Following college, Leonard modified his name for his Screen Actors Guild membership because another actor has the same name, so he added Sean (after his brother).
His first role was a small one in 1986’s My Two Loves and the same year he was also in the suspense thriller, The Manhattan Project. In 1989, he took second billing in Dead Poets Society as a young student whose passion for acting is smothered in fear of his father’s wrath. His performance was hailed as an equal to the film’s star, Robin Williams who received an Academy Award for his role.
Related: Robin Williams Movies and TV Shows: Reflecting on the Comedy Icon’s Remarkable Career
But Leonard was certainly noticed and on his way up the Hollywood ladder. In 1990, at age 20, he proceeded to act in another Oscar nominated film, Mr. & Mrs. Bridge, opposite Paul Newman. Soon massive success came to him in three separate 1993 films: Much Ado About Nothing, Swing Kids (where he was the lead) and The Age of Innocence.
While you’d think after three hit films, that Leonard’s phone wouldn’t stop ringing, it did. In response, he took roles in a few box office disappointments: Killer: A Journal of Murder, The Boys Next Door I Love You, I Love You (all 1996) and The Last Days of Disco (1998).
Given that Hollywood film producers weren’t embracing him any longer, Leonard turned his sights to television in The Outer Limits and Wasteland. A few more films turned out to be box office poison, but then along the chance to become part of the House cast.
Leonard was the first actor to be cast on this hit series, as Dr. James Wilson, the only person that House considers a friend. “I didn’t want to be the lead guy,” Leonard remembers. “That’s too much work. But I thought that it might be fun to be the lead guy’s friend. I’d have days off and still get a paycheck every week. Hugh is remarkable. I lean in the door and say ‘Hey, what do you think about egg salad for lunch?’ Then I have two days in a row off. It was a great gig.” In real life, Leonard and Laurie remain close friends long after House went off the air.
As Dr. Wilson, head of the oncology department, from the beginning to the end of the drama’s run, Leonard appeared on Entertainment Weekly’s 100 list as “Dr. Underrated” in 2007.
In addition to TV and feature films, he’s is a three-time Tony Award nominee and won Best Featured Actor in a Play in 2001 for his role in The Invention of Love. Previous to this, he had acted in the New York premiere of Arcadia at Lincoln Center in 1995. Several other theatrical performances followed, including the lead performer in a revival of The Music Man.
Jennifer Morrison as Dr. Allison Cameron in House cast
Born in Chicago, Jennifer Marie Morrison, worked as a child model, having appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated for Kids with Michael Jordan when she was 10 years old. She also did print work for JC Penney and commercials for Rice Krispies and Mondo. After high school, Jennifer attended Loyola University in Chicago, studying theater and English. Before relocating to Los Angeles to pursue her acting career, she studied at the famed Steppenwolf Theater company in Chicago.
Morrison’s movie debut came in 1994 playing the daughter of Richard Gere and Sharon Stone in Intersection. Various TV and film roles followed, including the lead in Urban Legends: Final Cut in 2000. Wide recognition came when Morrison began playing Dr. Allison Cameron in 2004 on House, for which she was nominated for a prestigious SAG Award.
“House was such a special part of my life”, she has said. Since leaving the sterile halls of her teaching hospital, Morrison has continued with a successful career with roles in the 2009 Star Trek film (as Captain Kirk’s mother), How I Met Your Mother, Warrior and, of course, as Emma Swan on 2011 to 2018’s Once Upon a Time.
In her downtime, Morrison loves to clean. “It’s my favorite form of relaxation. I clear things out and get rid of the stuff I don’t need. When the food pantry and the refrigerator are organized, I feel less stressed.” Just what the doctor ordered!
Jesse Spencer as Dr. Robert Chase in House cast
Born in Melbourne, Australia, Jesse Spencer’s U.S. breakout role was as Dr. Robert Chase in the House cast. Prior to that role, he had enjoyed an eight year run on Australia’s favorite soap opera, Neighbours, as Billy Kennedy.
As Dr. Chase, the diagnostic team’s surgeon and ICU specialist, Spencer played a prominent role throughout the series. After the medical drama went off the air, he took his good looks to another long running series in 2012 as Lieutenant/Captain Matthew Casey on Chicago Fire, remaining on the show. He also played Casey on Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med.
He still remains friends with Hugh Laurie through their charity cover group, Band from TV. He plays the violin in this ensemble.
Take a look back at more of your favorite 2000s TV dramas below!
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‘Lost’ Cast Then and Now: Take a Trip Back to The Island and See Where the Stars Are Today
‘Criminal Minds’ Cast Then and Now: Catch Up With The Agents of the B.A.U.
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