When The Pitt premiered on Max (later rebranded as HBO Max) in January 2025, it became nothing short of an overnight sensation for streaming audiences. Now, as shooting begins for the third season, a few months after the second-season premiere, comes the news that the American medical drama series has received the highest number of nominations for the 2026 Primetime Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Drama Series and Lead Actor.
Interestingly, Noah Wyle, the lead character in The Pitt, booked one of the first roles of his career as one of the leads alongside George Clooney in ER, the second-longest-running prime time medical drama in American television history behind Grey’s Anatomy.
Medical dramas are once again finding favour with audiences, with new series emerging in English, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Hindi and other languages over the past few years. The resurgence has been driven by several factors. The pandemic altered public perceptions of healthcare professionals, as audiences developed a renewed appreciation for stories rooted in medicine — not for the academic entertainment and relationship drama, but as explorations of vicarious trauma experienced by healthcare workers, the true scale and variety of ailments seen in patients, burnout, teamwork and compassion.
The renewed interest is fuelled by the modern ‘content streamers’ growing investment in health and wellness. On these shows, medical myths are both created and debunked, some set unreal expectations of healthcare workers’ lives while others show the harsh realities with a touch more accuracy. Themes like life, death, family, sacrifice and hope have made access and viewing easier for audiences. Stories and reels on social media are depicting the realities faced by healthcare workers, particularly those sharing first-hand accounts after volunteering in the West Bank.
India has seen renewed interest in medical storytelling, particularly on streaming platforms. Mumbai Diaries 26/11 debuted in 2021, using the backdrop of the Mumbai terror attacks to depict the challenges faced by doctors in an overcrowded government hospital. Its second season, released in 2023, shifted focus to the Mumbai flooding. Others released in the last few years include Doctors, Medical Dreams, and more recently Gram Chikitsalaya, which puts a comedic spin on a primary health clinic in a village, and Who’s Your Gynac, which follows the trials faced by a young female gynaecologist and her patients.
In 2024, Indian multispecialty hospital chain Narayana Health produced a YouTube docudrama series titled InsidER which depicted dramatised reenactments of emergency and trauma cases seen in hospitals. Globally, while all-time hits such as Grey’s Anatomy, which started in 2005 and aired the final episode of its concluding 22nd season, and The Good Doctor (2017-2024) popularised neurodiverse representation through its protagonist, NBC’s Transplant (2020-2024) explored immigration and identity through the experiences of a Syrian refugee rebuilding his career in Canada.
Meanwhile, South Korea has emerged as one of the strongest producers of medical dramas. Hospital Playlist (2020-2021) became a global streaming phenomenon and more recently, The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call (2025) has been praised for its depiction of emergency medicine and trauma care, reflecting audiences’ growing appetite for fast-paced and emotional storylines.
Releases in Japan such as Radiation House II (2021) highlighted the role of radiology technicians and diagnostic imaging specialists.