Scrubs revival retcon makes Season 9 non-canonical, alters Ted's Cougar Town arc

Movieweb reports the upcoming Scrubs revival has effectively removed Season 9 from the show's main continuity, with returning star Donald Faison telling Esquire fans should view the Med School year as an "Elseworld or multiverse-type situation." The 13 Med School episodes still occurred, the outlet says, but are now said to have unfolded in a different reality that diverges from the revival's timeline after Season 8.

The revision also affects Ted Buckland's appearances on Cougar Town: Sam Lloyd played Ted in all nine seasons of Scrubs and then turned up in three Cougar Town episodes between 2011 and 2012, which had been assumed to follow the original Scrubs timeline. With Med School placed in an alternate branch, those Cougar Town events now arguably sit on a different timeline than the revival's revised continuity. The revival will have a new day-to-day showrunner, Aseem Batra, while creator Bill Lawrence remains involved but less available due to other projects.

Sam Lloyd, who died in 2020, will not appear in the revival directly, though Zach Braff has said the return will include a location called Lloyd's Tavern in tribute. It remains unknown whether the revival will provide an off-screen or revised resolution for Ted's story under the reworked continuity.

Key Topics

Culture, Scrubs, Med School, Donald Faison, Aseem Batra, Bill Lawrence