Zach Braff has signed on to reprise his role in ABC’s upcoming Scrubs reboot, PEOPLE has learned
Over the years, Braff has been vocal about his desire to return to the beloved medical sitcom with the original cast
Series creator, Bill Lawrence, also previously revealed what he hopes the reboot will look like
Zach Braff is scrubbing in!
PEOPLE has learned that the actor, 50, will reprise his beloved role of John “J.D.” Dorian in ABC’s upcoming reboot of Scrubs.
From 2001 to 2010, Braff took on the role of J.D., the central physician on the beloved medical comedy alongside his costars Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke, Judy Reyes and Christa Miller. For the series’ ninth and final season, Braff returned for only six episodes as the season introduced a new set of characters. Over the course of its run, the actor received three Golden Globe nominations and an Emmy nod.
Chris Haston/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
From left: Judy Reyes as Nurse Carla Espinosa, Zach Braff as Dr. John ‘J.D.’ Dorian, Sarah Chalke as Dr. Elliot Reid (back, l-r) John C. McGinley as Dr. Perry Cox, Donald Faison as Dr. Christopher Turk, Ken Jenkins as Dr. Bob Kelso on ‘Scrubs’
Since the show’s end, Braff has been vocal about returning to Sacred Heart Hospital for a potential reboot.
During an appearance on the Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum podcast in August 2024, the actor revealed what he missed most about starring in the sitcom.
“I miss laughing every day. Belly laughing every day was – that was the job. And when that goes away, by the time nine years were over, we were sort of all exhausted by it,” he said at the time. “We were starting to repeat jokes. Everyone’s pretty fried. We would do insane hours that people don’t even do anymore. We didn’t really have much of a life outside of it. So we were just kind of fried.”
Kevin Winter/Getty
ach Braff attends the season 2 world premiere of Apple TV+’s “Shrinking” at Pacific Design Center on October 8, 2024 in West Hollywood, California.
Though the sitcom’s conclusion in 2010 definitely felt like the right thing, Braff said that he would love to reprise his role should the opportunity arise. However, he had a few parameters that would need to be met should he return.
“When we signed up to do our show, they can put you under a pretty insane contract of, like, seven years and stuff, which was… which I wouldn’t do [again],” he explained. “But some sort of a limited thing? You’re basically saying, ‘Do you wanna go get the gang back together and f—— laugh your ass off with some of your best friends and be paid well?’ Yeah, that sounds amazing.”
Bill Lawrence, the show’s original creator, also previously told Deadline what he envisioned for the upcoming Scrubs reboot. The showrunner revealed that he expected the new series to feature both the original cast and new actors.
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“We’ve been talking about a lot, and I think the only real reason to do it is a combo,” he explained. “A: people wanting to see what the world of medicine was like for the people they love, which is part of any successful reboot. But B: I think that show always worked because you get to see young people dropped into the world of medicine, knowing young people that go there are super idealistic and are doing it because it’s a calling.”
He added, “There’s no cliché ‘rich doctors playing golf’ — that’s not what it is anymore. So I think that, no matter what it is, it would be a giant mistake not to do as a combo of those two things.”
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