30 Years Later, ER Director Recalls the Show’s Pivotal Episode That Made George Clooney’s Career

On Nov. 9, 1995, NBC aired “Hell and High Water,” a pivotal ER episode that forever changed George Clooney’s career. Now, 30 years later, Christopher Chulack, who was nominated for an Emmy for directing the episode, has reflected on the making of “Hell and High Water” and how Clooney’s acclaimed performance instantly landed him the role of Batman.

Speaking with TV Insider for the 30th anniversary of “Hell and High Water,” which largely focused on Clooney’s Dr. Doug Ross trying to save a boy (Erik von Detten) trapped in a storm drain during a storm, Chulack recalled how well-prepped the episode was before going into production, noting that nothing really changed. “We had a big meeting. We knew we had a kid in the water as well as number two on the call sheet, George Clooney, and although he wasn’t George Clooney, yet — he was George Clooney after that episode,” the director stated.

While “Hell and High Water” is often regarded as one of ER‘s best episodes, the medical drama was already a hit with viewers, with Chulack recalling how “the Today Show was following us [while we prepped the episode].” However, the Season 2 episode elevated the series to new heights, with Chulack noting that the “episode got 45 million viewers,” making it the highest-rated show of that week. The episode earned six nominations at the 48th Primetime Emmy Awards, including Clooney for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.

George Clooney Booked Batman Because of “Hell and High Water”

Image via Warner Bros.

As Chulack alludes to in his TV Insider interview, Clooney’s performance in “Hell and High Water” turned him into a movie star. Before the episode aired, Clooney was largely known for his work on television, having recurred on The Facts of Life and Roseanne before booking ER. However, that changed following ER‘s success, especially after “Hell and High Water” aired, with Chulack recalling, “The next day, this is a true story — the next day, Bob Daley and Terry Semel, who were the presidents of Warner Bros. Television, came down and knocked on George’s dressing room door and told him, ‘You’re going to be the next Batman because of the heroism of that episode.’ So I figured it’s just going to go up from here, and it did.”

Clooney became the sixth actor to portray Bruce Wayne/Batman in a live-action Batman movie, after Lewis Wilson, Robert Lowery, Adam West, Michael Keaton, and Val Kilmer. The movie, 1997’s Batman & Robin, served as a sequel to Batman (1989), Batman Returns (1992), and Batman Forever (1995), but was far cheesier and light-hearted than any of its three predecessors, which was reportedly due to a Warner Bros. mandate to make the movie more toyetic, so that they could sell more toys. Critics and audiences did not respond positively to Batman & Robin largely for this reason, with the superhero movie often considered not only the worst Batman movie, but one of the worst movies ever made.

ER fans can revisit “Hell and High Water” by streaming the episode on HBO Max or Hulu.

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Release Date

1994 – 2009-00-00

Showrunner

Michael Crichton

Directors

Michael Crichton

Writers

George Clooney