Abii o Ethel 🌕

As HBO's acclaimed medical drama "The Pitt" concludes its second season, star and creator Noah Wyle is opening up about portraying his first Jewish character - and how the October 7th, 2023 Hamas massacre transformed what the role means to him. Wyle, 54, plays Dr. Michael "Robby” Robinavitch in the series, a character whose Jewish background became "something significant" after the pogrom, he told Jewish Chronicle. "All of this was before October 7th. After the pogrom, it became something significant in the character," Wyle explained. "We wanted Robby to be distant from his faith and in need of connection to it." The character's name honors Wyle's own family - his great-grandmother's father was named Robinavitch, and the other side of the family was Rabinsky. Dr. Robinavitch wears a Star of David around his neck and, in a pivotal scene, clutches it while reciting the Shema Israel for comfort.