Keeping it real on a TV medical drama
Canadian Ben Hollingsworth and other actors toured the hospital that Code Black is based on
As a Canadian living in the United States, Ben Hollingsworth says he has learned to appreciate the differences in the two health-care systems. And now that he’s playing an emergency room doctor in Code Black, he says he’ll never take the concept of universal health care for granted again.
“I think you learn how lucky you are to be in Canada. And you learn that the good doctors aren’t necessarily in the best and shiniest hospitals,” says Hollingsworth, who plays Dr. Mario Savetti, a first-year resident in the show that premieres Wednesday at 10 p.m. on CTV.
“In Canada we take it for granted that you can receive health care without financial stress or anxiety. The idea that you can come out of there with a bill in five or six digits is really crazy. You’ve got family members who are potentially losing a loved one and they’re asking if you have insurance, while you’re just trying to figure out if the guy is breathing.”
Code Black is based on the documentary of the same name by physician Ryan McGarry, which follows health-care workers at Los Angeles County Hospital, considered the busiest emergency room in the United States and a birthplace of emergency medicine. Code Black refers to a saturation point where the influx of patients overwhelms the system.
“After reading the script I really felt that it was more than just your average medical drama,” Hollingsworth says.
Hollingsworth says he will never take universal health care for granted again
“You have these unsung heroes working in a county hospital, resources are at a minimum, patient load is at a maximum,” says the Brockville, Ont.-born Hollingsworth. “This hospital is in code black 300 times a year. It’s crazy, but it makes for great drama.”
Fans may recognize Hollingsworth from the Toronto-shot Suits, where he plays Kyle Durant, a rival to Mike Ross (Toronto native Patrick J. Adams). He also starred in Cult and The Tomorrow People.
This time his co-stars include Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden (for Pollock) and Raza Jaffrey ( Homeland).
“We wanted to make a world that was not like any other medical show,” executive producer Michael Seitzman told TV critics in Los Angeles. “It’s not glossy. It doesn’t feel Hollywood. What we end up with is something that feels incredibly authentic and doesn’t feel like anything else.”
Hollingsworth says part of the prep for the actors on the show included tours of the hospital where he saw gunshot wounds and physicians attend to a construction worker who fell off a four-storey building.
“It’s kind of this chaotic ballet, but the level of calmness within these trained professionals was outstanding,” says Hollingsworth.
“Because we’re based on a documentary, production really emphasized that everything had to be as authentic as possible. We had extras who were nurses and they were told to give direction and speak as if they were treating an actual patient. The details were incredible.”
Hollingsworth says most of the action takes place in a central emergency room.
“The trauma room is first and foremost. There is a lot of action all in this 20by-20-foot spot. It’s really intense, but it feels real.”
Hollingsworth’s character is the rebel in the ensemble of doctors. He also has a history of drug abuse.
“He comes off as a bit of a jerk. He’s never been silver-spooned, he’s not a trust-fund baby,” says the 31-year-old actor.
“He’s really proud he came from the streets to where he is.”