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They're Not Dead! They're on NBC: 11 Actors You May Not Realize Are Series Regulars on NBC Dramas

By Dustin Rowles | TV | January 30, 2025 |

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Header Image Source: NBC

We did this a few years ago, mostly because I was a bit blown away when I found out that Jeremy Sisto — of Six Feet Under and Suburbia — had ended up on a CBS procedural, FBI, where he’s been for the last seven years. I don’t watch FBI or CSI (is CSI even on anymore?) or NCIS, so it’s often a surprise to me to learn that actors that I have not seen in years are series regulars on these shows.

That’s what happened again, this week, when I discovered that Dermot Mulroney, the guy from My Best Friend’s Wedding and Catherine Keener’s ex, has been on Chicago Fire for the last year! I had no idea, although it makes sense: All those procedurals need a Mark Harmon type, a good-looking dude with grey hair to appeal to the core audience of these procedurals.

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He should not be confused with Dylan McDermott, who spent a couple of seasons on Law & Order: Organized Crime before also moving over to CBS’s FBI franchise (it’s a Dick Wolf show, so reruns are on Peacock).

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The Chicago franchise on NBC actually employs a number of actors who I otherwise thought had disappeared. It turns out, for instance, that David Eigenberg doesn’t sit around waiting for spot appearances on the Sex and the City revival. He’s also a Chicago Fire guy.

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She’s not there any longer, but Sophia Bush — of One Tree Hill — was on Chicago P.D. (lately, I’ve seen her playing a gay doctor on Grey’s Anatomy).

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We’ve seen Oliver Platt on The Bear, but I had no idea he’s been on Chicago Med for the LAST DECADE.

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Do you know who else has been collecting a paycheck for several years on Chicago Med? Our old friend, Steven Weber. These procedurals are starting to feel like the television equivalent of planned communities for older TV actors.

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Longtime Law & Order actress S. Epatha Merkerson is also a longtime Chicago Med actress — she’s been there for a decade, too.

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Speaking of Law & Order, that’s a show I do watch, but others might be surprised to know that that’s where Hugh Dancy has landed.

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It’s also where Tony Goldwyn ended up (replacing longtime cast member Sam Waterston).

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And, just this season, Maura Tierney is now a series regular:

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Brett Dalton, of Agents of SHIELD fame, also spent a chunk of time on a Chicago, though now he’s a series regular on a different NBC procedural, Found. Check out that stache!

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