The Best Books, Movies, Video Games, and Podcasts to Listen to After Watching Pitt.
Pitt is a classic example of taking an old idea and breathing new life into it. Dramas centered on life-and-death situations in the hospital or emergency room have been around for decades, but Pitt— originally conceived as a direct sequel to one of the greatest medical dramas of all time, ER —perfected its combination of realism, dynamic pacing, and superb character development. Since its debut in 2025, the series has rightfully become a sensation.
If your entire week is dedicated to new episodes of a TV series, you’ll have a lot of free time between them, and soon, a long wait for season three. To fill that gap, you can check out this list of other TV shows worth watching . And if you’re looking to expand beyond television, here are books, movies, games, and podcasts that can convey similar themes and atmosphere.
Best Books Similar to Pitt
With its unusually long season (compared to most other modern series), its emphasis on characters, and its gradual development of themes, “Pitt” feels a lot like a novel. Here are some of the best books that will give you a similar experience.
“This Is Going to Hurt” by Adam Kay
The film adaptation of This Is Going to Hurt, based on Adam Kay’s personal experiences working in an NHS obstetrics and gynaecology unit, starring Ben Wishall, is on our list of TV shows like Pitt. It’s a great show, but it differs from the original in many ways. Kay’s book is less bitter and more persistent, based directly on his diary entries and featuring a more sarcastic style. If you want a more frank, gripping, and powerful look at the challenges doctors and nurses face every day of their careers, give it a read.
Five Days at Memorial , Sheri Fink
If your favorite moments on Pitt are moments like the first season’s mass shooting, then Five Days at Memorial is the perfect read (its film adaptation is also on our list of TV shows for Pitt fans). When Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in 2005, hospitals faced unimaginable challenges. Fink’s book chronicles the experiences of Memorial Medical Center staff as they grappled with an influx of desperate patients, dwindling medical supplies, and impossible medical decisions made under the most dire circumstances.
“Emergency” by Thomas Fisher
In his memoir, Fisher describes his experiences as a physician at the University of Chicago Medical Center, beginning in 2006. If you enjoy the individual stories Pitt presents in each episode, this book is for you—Fisher details some of the cases he encountered, delving into fascinating illnesses and his approach to diagnosing and treating them. He also clearly reveals what’s wrong with our modern approach to medicine and how it often fails those who need it most.
House of God , Samuel Shem
Although somewhat dated today, Shem’s semi-autobiographical 1978 novel accurately captures the spirit of rivalry and camaraderie among interns and residents, as well as the psychological toll that the pressures of teaching can take. It’s a witty and humorous takedown of resident training methods, and it may have influenced the reforms that have since taken place.
The Shift by Teresa Brown, RN.
At Pitt , they know that the most important people in the emergency department are often not the doctors, but the nurses. In “Shift,” Brown uses the same technique as in Pitt , describing a single 12-hour shift so you can experience every stage of a patient’s treatment from her perspective. The result is everything you could want from such a book: a fast-paced story about professionals making life-and-death decisions under pressure, and about the people whose lives depend on them.
Best Movies Like Pitt
If you’re not happy with the Pitt series because the episodes aren’t long enough, check out these movies with similar themes and plots.
Code Black (2013)
In many ways, “Code Black” is a true-life version of the events in “The Pitt.” Filmed in 2013 in one of the country’s busiest emergency rooms (Los Angeles County Medical Center), this documentary follows a team of young doctors as they face a seemingly endless stream of injured and sick people desperately needing help. The doctors grapple with everything depicted in “The Pitt,” from personal relationships to the complexities of medical record keeping and dealing with insurance companies—but everything you see really happened. Watch “Code Black” on Prime Video .
M*A*S*H (1970)
It might seem like an odd combination, given that M*A*S*H is set during the Korean War, but Robert Altman’s classic film captures the tense atmosphere of emergency medical care and the ingenuity of doctors struggling under less-than-ideal conditions. The characters’ disdain for their superiors and the bureaucracy that complicates their work is clearly reflected in Dr. Robbie’s attitude more than 50 years later. Watch M*A*S*H on Prime Video .
Contagion (2011)
While Contagion is a global film about a fictional pandemic and the race to find a cure before it’s too late, its atmosphere of constant emergency and the broken spirits who confront it will resonate with fans of the Pitt series. If you enjoy the medical mysteries the show offers, this film’s horror atmosphere is a supercharged version of that. Rent Contagion on Prime Video .
Hospital (1970)
Without narration or interviews, Frederick Wieman’s 1970 documentary remains highly regarded for its deep dive and powerful portrayal of a dysfunctional healthcare system. In fact, you’ll be amazed at how little has changed in the 56 years since the film was made. Sure, the technology and protocols are different, but the doctors, nurses, and patients depicted in the film face many of the same fears and frustrations as Dr. Robbie and his staff. Watch “The Hospital” on Kanopy .
Code 3 (2025)
If you’re looking for something lighter, closer to “Pitt,” this dark comedy starring Rainn Wilson, Lil Rel Howery, and Aimee Carrero is just what you need. The film follows a burned-out paramedic who thinks he’s on his last shift, and has a similar structure to “Pitt,” staying focused on a single shift as the characters deal with various cases and characters. It’s funny, but also has a deep, poignant undercurrent. Watch “Code 3” on Hulu .
The best video games like The Pitt
No, there’s no first-person walking simulator where you play as Dr. Robbie, but there are a few games that offer a similar atmosphere to The Pitt if you’re looking for a more active alternative.
Emergency Room: Real-Life Rescue Operations
If you’re looking for a taste of the stress and pressure associated with quickly and effectively diagnosing, treating, and providing care to patients, Emergency Room: Real Life Rescues is the game for you. You play as a trainee paramedic, and the gameplay revolves around successfully treating the patients you’re called to. Since you’re not playing as a doctor in the emergency room, the number of procedures you can perform is limited, but the game does a good job of getting your adrenaline pumping, something we think the doctors at the University of Pittsburgh would appreciate.
Platforms: Nintendo DS
Project hospital
Project Hospital is a management simulator that attempts to replicate the serious work of a hospital: treating patients and managing resources. The game may have a cartoonish appearance, but don’t let that fool you: when it comes to keeping people alive, it can be as complex as the University of Pittsburgh itself . In fact, one of the “gamified” aspects of Project Hospital involves finding ways to inflate bills to insurance companies to maximize profits—which may seem too realistic for some.
Platforms: macOS, Linux, GeForce Now, PC, Steam
Military hospital
Set during World War I, War Hospital puts you in the shoes of an administrator trying to keep a field hospital running behind the front lines under the most dire conditions. You’ll not only have to manage supplies, construction, and staff morale, but also triage seriously wounded soldiers desperate for medical attention. If you’re missing the tension of the Pitt films, this is a great way to experience it. And not quite to the fullest.
Platforms: PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox Series X/S
911 operator
If you watch Pitt and think charge nurse Dana Evans handles the chaos of the emergency room with ease, try being a 911 operator. While it doesn’t take place in an emergency room, you’ll feel the same atmosphere, trying to put out medical fires with limited resources as a 911 operator, deciding where to dispatch police, firefighters, and/or paramedics when various disasters and emergencies arise. It’s a surprisingly challenging and delightfully tense task that will give you a new appreciation for the work of people like Evans on Pitt .
Platforms: PC, Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch
Best podcasts like The Pitt
Just because your eyes are tired doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy Pitt . Whether you’re looking for a deep dive into the plot or a similar narrative style, we’ve got you covered.
Pitt’s podcast
The official podcast, a companion to the series , is hosted by Dr. Alok Patel and Hunter Harris. It seamlessly blends real-life medical analysis and expertise with episode reviews, interviews with the cast, crew, and creators, and other fascinating insights. If you’re a University of Pittsburgh fan, this podcast is a must-have.
Team Pitt
If you’re looking for a less corporate, more fan-focused podcast analyzing Pitt, this is it. The hosts of The Pitt Crew (Camille, Mal, and Robert) bring a wonderfully human energy to their discussions, making it the perfect option if you’re missing real people who share your love for Pitt and don’t want to spend endless hours discussing why Joy’s sarcasm and misanthropy are acceptable and Ogilvy should go.
Night Artists
One of the reasons Pitt resonates so strongly is the deep research behind the stories: the cases and their resolutions are based on real medical emergencies encountered by real doctors. Night Doctors is a real-life version of this: real doctors and other medical professionals tell stories based on their real experiences. It’s just as dramatic and gripping as the show, but with the added weight of knowing it all actually happened.
Doctor of Mind
If you really enjoy it when doctors from the University of Pittsburgh have to solve medical mysteries, listen to the podcast “Doctor Mind.” This podcast features gripping, twisted stories about medical mysteries based on real cases and events. Basically, if you want Dr. Gregory House to work at the University of Pittsburgh , this is the podcast for you (and, Noah Wyle, go ahead with this idea; it’s brilliant).