12:21pm PT by Rick Porter
NBC Pulls 'New Amsterdam' Pandemic Episode
NBC has pulled an episode of its medical drama New Amsterdam that deals with a fictional flu pandemic.
The installment, originally titled simply "Pandemic" but later changed to "Our Doors Are Always Open," was scheduled to air April 7. Instead, then network will air reruns of New Amsterdam on March 31 and April 7 before a season finale on April 14 — the show's last produced episode before it shut down production in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
The real-life pandemic is also the reason behind shelving "Our Doors Are Always Open."
Schulner said actor Daniel Dae Kim, whose character was to be introduced in the pandemic episode, tested positive for the coronavirus after the show shut down. One of the show's writers is also ill, he noted.
New Amsterdam was one of hundreds of TV productions that shut down in response to the coronavirus outbreak, leaving it short of its full complement of episodes for the season. The series' future on NBC is secure, however, as the network gave it a three-season renewal in January that will take the show through the 2022-23 season.
Schulner also signed a new four-year overall deal at Universal TV, which produces New Amsterdam, in February.
Deadline first reported the news and posted Schulner's essay.