Ah Cuddy, we hardly knew ye.
But it seems that the character of Dr. Lisa Cuddy, played by the sexy and smart Lisa Edelstein, will not be returning to “House” after the hit show’s seventh season. Edelstein, 44, has decided to pursue new opportunities after her long-term contract ran out, much to the surprise of executive producer David Shore (despite squeeze-out rumors).
“I don’t know how exactly [the show would have ended this season if aware of Edelstein’s departure],” he told Entertainment Weekly. “I don’t know what it would have been. It probably would have involved more closure on the character. I was really disappointed. I am still reeling from it but we just started meeting a few days ago, like we always do this time of year, to try to map out the first half of the next season, and we are having some very frank discussions about what we are going to do.”
Said “House” writer Peter Blake: “The hardest part about her being gone is we lost an important character to write stories about. I think everyone knows that the writers have nothing to do with her departure. It is a big deal because the Cuddy-House dynamic is one the reasons people watch the show. It was one of the driving forces of the show and one of the reasons it kept bubbling up.”
Nonetheless, the show will go on, assures Shore. “`House’ is not going to be totally changed or different. The show is what it is. I am who I am. I write what I find interesting and always have,” he says. “We have a veteran team of writers and we are not going to let the show take a nosedive eight years in. We just won’t. Bear with us fans.”


