How Dr. Cox's New Scrubs Role Changes The Season 2 Dynamic

MovieStillsDB Published Sep 25, 2026, 4:46 PM EDT Sign in to your ScreenRant account Dr. Cox’s involvement in Scrubs season 2 will shake things up at Sacred Heart Hospital. When the Scrubs revival premiered on ABC back in February, the first episode ended with John C. McGinley’s Perry retiring and selecting Zach Braff’s John “J.D.” Dorian to become Sacred Heart’s new Chief of Medicine. Dr. Cox then returned for season 1’s final two episodes as a patient, and it was discovered that he has microscopic polyangiitis, a rare and incurable autoimmune disease. As a result, McGinley’s character will continue visiting Sacred Heart in Scrubs season 2 for treatment. In an interview with ScreenRant's Tatiana Hullender, Donald Faison and Sarah Chalke, who reprise Chris Turk and Elliot Reid, respectively, as series regulars in the Scrubs revival, opened up about how their characters’ dynamics with Dr. Cox change in season 2. Faison noted how even though Dr. Cox is no longer J.D., Turk, and Elliot’s boss, there are “a few lessons that he still has to bestow” upon them in his continuing role as “mentor.” Chalked added: Yeah, it starts off in a really cool way, having all of us come together - Donald, Zach, Judy, and I - to all take care of him. In terms of where it goes, we just finished filming [episode] 3, and we don't actually know the entire arc, but we know we're going to get more Johnny and more Judy. Both of those things are very exciting. Just like in Scrubs season 1, McGinley will recur as Dr. Cox in season 2, so it remains to be seen how many episodes he’ll appear in. The actor served as a series regular in all nine seasons of the original Scrubs alongside Braff and Faison, while Chalke recurred in season 9. The main cast in the show’s first eight seasons also included Judy Reyes as Carla Espinosa, Neil Flynn as The Janitor, and Ken Jenkins as Bob Kelso, with the latter two making a guest appearance and recurring appearances, respectively, in the now-disregarded Scrubs season 9. Along with Dr. Cox’s recurring presence at Sacred Heart, Scrubs season 2 will explore J.D.’s new romantic relationship with Rachel Bilson’s Charlie, who was introduced in the season 1 finale. In sharp contrast, Braff’s character will also have to continue dealing with The Janitor, who claims to be the Chief Custodian of the Joint Commission, and his “son,” “Maintenance Guy,” played by Darcy Michael. Elliot will also reconnect with her ex-boyfriend Sean Kelly, reprised by Scott Foley. In addition to Braff, Faison, and Chalke continuing as series regulars, Ava Bunn, who plays Dr. Samantha Tosh, has been promoted to the main cast in Scrubs season 2. The show’s returning lineup of recurring characters include Jacob Dudman as Dr. Asher Green, David Gridley as Dr. Blake Lewis, Layla Mohammadi as Dr. Amara Hadi, Amanda Morrow as Dr. Dashana Trainor, Michael James Scott as Nurse Francois Dubois, and Vanessa Bayer as Sibby Wilson, Sacred Heart’s head of HR. Joel Kim Booster and X Mayo will not return as Dr. Kevin Park and Nurse Pippa Raymond, respectively. The first two episodes of Scrubs season 2 premiere Wednesday, September 30 on ABC's fall 2026 schedule. Release Date 2001 - 2010-00-00 Network ABC, NBC Showrunner Bill Lawrence Cast Donald Faison Christopher Turk Zach Braff John 'J.D.' Dorian Directors Michael Spiller, Chris Koch, Ken Whittingham, Adam Bernstein, Gail Mancuso, Marc Buckland, John Inwood, John Putch, Will Mackenzie, Victor Nelli Jr., Craig Zisk, Lawrence Trilling, Linda Mendoza, Michael McDonald, John Michel, Rick Blue, Richard Alexander Wells, Henry Chan, Joanna Kerns, Mark Stegemann, Matthew Diamond, Peter Lauer, Elodie Keene, Jason Ensler Writers Mike Schwartz, Gabrielle Allan, Bill Callahan, Matt Tarses, Kevin Biegel, Aseem Batra, Tad Quill, Clarence Livingston, Andy Schwartz, Dave Tennant, Sean Russell, Ryan Levin, Danny Rubin, Jonathan Groff, Robert Lopez, Stephen Cragg, David Feinberg, Jeff Marx, Justin Spitzer, Rich Eustis, Steven Cragg, Lon Zimmet, Mark Schwartz, Devin O. Mahoney Creator(s) Bill Lawrence