Shonda Rimes saw the handwriting on the hospital wall a couple of seasons ago, and brought in a number of new faces to try and perk up flagging interest in Private Practice, the already tired spin-off of the already tired Grey’s Anatomy. Among the new recruits: Benjamin Bratt, a couple of years out from his long stint on the original Law and Order, and clearly ready for a new gig.
But it was probably too little too late. Fan fave Tim Daly was let go in the spring; Kate Walsh announced this was her last season no matter what, and ABC only ordered an abbreviated 13 episodes for the new year. So when Rimes made the official announcement that “613 would be the last episode” in her blog on Friday Oct. 19, it wasn’t much of a surprise.
What with Christmas break and other pre-emptions, 13 episodes will probably take PP well into the new year, which is why the ‘announcement’–in a producer’s blog?–was nearly detail-free. Meanwhile, Bratt has already found a couple of other things to do, including a co-starring role in Snitch, Dwayne Johnson’s next actioner, due out in February 2013, and some voice work on Cloudy 2, the sequel to Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. Maybe this will give him time to reprise his role as Sofía Vergara’s exotic ex-husband with the Ricardo Montalban accent on ABC’s Modern Family.
This makes the third cancellation of the season so far–one for each network–and each program has had a Latino in the cast: Felix Solis in CBS’ Made in Jersey, JoAnna Garcia Swisher in NBC’S Animal Practice, and now Bratt in Private Practice. On the other hand, there are so many Latinos in supporting roles or arcs this season–far more than we thought when the season began–that the overall new for Latinos in front and behind the camera is still relatively good.
