Dishing With the Doc: Q&A With ER's Maura Tierney

From: Lauren Barth   237 days 5 hours 12 minutes ago

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It’s the end of an era for Maura Tierney. The small-screen doc is checking out of the ER. The actress talks to us about shedding her scrubs and leaving the NBC drama. – Lauren Barth.

After playing Abby for years, how do you see this person overall?She’s gone through so many ups and downs. She’s done so many great things, made so many mistakes.

I see the character as very human … I feel like [the writers] have taken great care of this character. I mean, it’s hard for everybody when you’re on a show for a long time to keep it interesting. And I think always Abby was really protected by the writers because, you know, they were always interested in keeping it real. And, you know, we’re - everyone matured. And I feel like the characters have matured …Your flaws or your weaknesses don’t entirely go away. And I feel like the writers were able to sort of mature her a little bit. And then you hit a speed bump and then she matures a little bit. So I think overall it’s just sort of a woman trying her best to, you know, grow up.

After all the twists and turns, what do you think Abby currently wants from her life with Luka? And what would you like to see happen?

Well right now where we are in the show, because of the trials and tribulations, I think Abby just wants everything to be okay. She made a lot of mistakes and it’s this very sort of delicate moment in her personal life because she’s sort of got her professional life back together.

How did it feel to come back and shoot the show after the strike? Did you guys feel creatively invigorated or did you have new ideas?

It was very odd to not be working. It’s a little shock to the system, especially after, you know, being there - you’re there so many hours, so many days.

When you first started on this show about five or so years ago, did you have any idea that this would turn into such a long term thing for you?

No, I didn’t. But it worked out that it was like such a great job. And the show kept going on, and they kept wanting me to stay there. So, you know, it was really a very, very fortunate thing for me.

Maura, do you ever stop and think about how you've played a really big part in television history?

There are moments I’ll be on set and you get this sort of glimpse of - that I was part of this thing that was this huge sort of phenomenon on television. And it’s sort of a big thing, so it’s hard to entirely wrap my mind around. But there are moments - just oddly, random moments where I’m on Stage 11 and you go wow, this is a very big deal.

Tell us honestly. When you leave the show, are we going to cry? How will things resolve with Luka?

We’re gonna make you cry so hard. And they might be tears of joy. That’s good. Whatever it is. I mean, that’s what’s great about having the ability to work with another actor for so many years, because it’s such a great relationship that we have as humans and the characters have. So there’s a lot for the writers to work with. So I don’t even know exactly what it’s going to be, but I’m excited.

Do you have a favorite episode that you were in?

The work I did with Sally [Fields], to me, is - has been my favorite throughout the whole time. For the - it was just a really, really exciting for me because the material was so great and Sally was so great.