Scrubs fans delight as Zach Braff finally signs on for reboot after tense negotiations over his deal

Scrubs made its biggest stride yet toward returning after its most identifiable star signed on.
The rebooted series, which is set to air on ABC, has signed on original star Zach Braff to return as John J.D. Dorian, sources told Deadline on Wednesday.
The move helps put in place the most important member of the original main cast, after the show also enlisted original creator and showrunner Bill Lawrence.
Representatives for ABC and 20th Television, which is producing the show, haven't commented on the reported development.
The return of Braff, 50, signals the series is more likely than ever to make it to air, as his participation make make it easier to lock in other members of the original lead cast.
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According to the publication, the negotiations to talk Braff into returning had some major hiccups along the way.
One sticking point was the actor and filmmaker's wish not to shoot the reboot in Vancouver, Canada, as was being proposed, presumably as a cost-cutting measure.
However, Braff reportedly insisted on keeping the series in Los Angeles.
Scrubs' first eight seasons were primarily filmed in a decommissioned hospital located in Los Angeles' North Hollywood neighborhood, while the show's ninth and final season moved to neighboring Culver City.
Braff also reportedly clashed with producers over money issues, and sources claimed that the dual issues created an impasse big enough that it could have scuttled the entire project.
However, the parties eventually found a compromise that was agreeable enough for everyone, though it hasn't yet been announced if Braff was successful in moving production back to Hollywood.
His desire to keep the show filming in LA comes in the context of fears of disastrous tariffs after President Donald Trump announced a plan to institute 100 percent tariffs on films made outside the US, though it's unclear if he intended television shows to suffer the same fate.
Southern California's iconic industry capital has struggled in recent years as productions have been lured to other states and international destinations to shoot films and TV shows by lucrative tax credits and cheaper operating costs.
Other complications for the Scrubs reboot have been tied to the show's creator.
In August, Braff revealed that negotiations were taking so long on the reboot because of Bill Lawrence's exclusive overall deal with Warner Bros TV, which would forbid him from making a show with 20th Television and ABC under normal circumstances.
Lawrence, who was also showrunner on the original series, has created the ongoing Apple TV+ shows Shrinking, Bad Monkey and Ted Lasso — which is set to return for a fourth season — as well as an upcoming comedy starring Steve Carell for HBO as part of his current deal.
Even after negotiations with Warners allowed Lawrence to develop the scrubs reboot on the side for Disney-owned 20th TV and ABC, he'll still have to sit out writing or showrunning duties due to his extreme time commitments on his other shows.
Scrubs originally aired on NBC for its first eight seasons, before moving to ABC for its ninth and final season.
Although there were bumps along the road to getting Lawrence and Braff back on the show, the two have continued to display a strong professional relationship in recent years.
Now that Braff's participation is secured, the production is in a stronger position to get the original main cast members to return. Those include Donald Faison, who played J.D.'s best friend Christopher Turk, as well as Sarah Chalke (Elliot Reid), Judy Reyes (Carla Espinosa) and John C. McGinley (Perry Cox).
Lawrence previously said he envisions the returning series as a hybrid of reboots and revivals, with the cast comprised of a mix of actors from the original series, along with new characters.
It's unclear if his plans for the show still involve all of the original cast members returning, and even if they do their roles may be necessarily diminished in order to give screen time to Scrubs' newer generation.
Braff — who has directed multiple films, including Garden State — worked as a director on an episode of Ted Lasso, which earned him Emmy and Director's Guild of America nominations.
He also had a guest spot on Lawrence's Courteney Cox–starring comedy Cougar Town, and more recently, he returned to direct episodes in the last two seasons of the Jason Segel and Harrison Ford–starring Shrinking on Apple TV+.
Braff also appeared in a multi-episode arc with star Vince Vaughn on Bad Monkey, and he's set to direct on Lawrence's HBO series with Steve Carell.
His most recent feature as director — and writer — was 2023's A Good Person, which starred his then-girlfriend Florence Pugh and Morgan Freeman.

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