The Pitt's Patrick Ball On The Significance Of Langdon's First Patient Back In Season 2 Premiere

Frequent flyer Louie Cloverfield is the first patient Dr. Frank Langdon treats upon returning to the ER in "The Pitt" Season 2 — a deliberate choice that forces him to confront the consequences of his addiction head-on.

As portrayer Patrick Ball tells TVLine, Langdon spent the past 10 months in rehab "probably planning for this day — planning what he's going to say to Robby when he sees him, what he's going to say to Santos, what he's going to say to Dana and Mel." In short, "he has a lot of apologies to make."

What Langdon likely didn't rehearse was facing Louie — the alcoholic whose Librium he stole last season, and whose missing pills Robby ultimately discovered stashed in Langdon's locker.

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"I think it's amazing writing by [series creator R. Scott Gemmill]," Ball says. "I don't know if it dawned on Langdon that he might run into Louie, but at the end of the day, Louie is somebody that he's wronged as much as anyone." What's more, Louie is "somebody that has the same shaped hole [in his life] as Langdon — a hole in his bucket — and he's on this path of addiction without the same sort of privileges and support structure that Langdon has."

What strikes Langdon most, though, is not just how much damage addiction can do — but how much possibility still exists on the other side of it.

"I think he sees in Louie how far down that rabbit hole you can go," Ball explains. "And he also sees somebody that he really believes can come back."

This article is one of five post mortems examining "The Pitt" Season 2 premiere. Each one looks at a different character or turning point from Episode 1. Here's your complete reading list:

1. "The Pitt" Season 2 Premiere: How Robby's Entrance Sets The Tone For July 4 Shift
2. "The Pitt" Season 2 Premiere: Why Did Dr. Al-Hashimi Freeze? Sepideh Moafi Teases The Truth
3. "The Pitt" Season 2 Premiere Hides A Big Santos/Garcia Reveal In Plain Sight — Isa Briones Explains
4. "The Pitt" Season 2 Premiere: Shabana Azeez On Javadi's Season 2 Crossroads — And The Pressure From Her Mother