The Lazarus Man ended after one season following Robert Urich’s illness

Movieweb reports that The Lazarus Man, a 1996 Western series starring Robert Urich, marks its 30th anniversary on January 20, 2026; the Castle Rock–produced show ran for 22 episodes on TNT and is widely regarded as an underrated series.

Created by Dick Bebee, the series presented a quasi-religious premise: an amnesiac Civil War veteran who had been buried alive rises like the Biblical Lazarus and seeks the truth about his past while plagued by a recurring nightmare of a man in a derby hat. The show works backward to reveal the character as James Cathcart, a former Union soldier and one of Abraham Lincoln’s personal bodyguards, who uncovers a vast conspiracy and wrestles with guilt over the presidential assassination.

The first 15 episodes aired January–May 1996, with seven more resuming in October; ratings were reportedly strong enough that the network ordered a second season and agreed to pay Urich $1.47 million. After Urich was diagnosed with synovial cell sarcoma in July 1996, Castle Rock canceled the series before Season 2 production. Urich sued for breach of contract, and the parties settled out of court for undisclosed compensation. The show remains obscure, is not available to stream, and has only a small number of user votes on IMDb with no Rotten Tomatoes score.

Key Topics

Culture, Robert Urich, Castle Rock Entertainment, Tnt, Dick Bebee, Synovial Cell Sarcoma