Chicago Med's Jessy Schram Was 'Geeking Out' Over Carl Weathers Directing Season 8 Episode 12
If you've ever met a celebrity and found yourself embarrassingly starstruck, don't feel too bad; celebrities themselves occasionally fail to maintain an aura of detached professionalism in the company of other famous folks.
A regular on "Chicago Med" since the 2020 season and a regular presence on scripted television for years before that, Jessy Schram is certainly used to working with famous people by now. In fact, she probably qualifies as a famous person herself. However — much like Tobias Fünke on "Arrested Development" – she could not hide her excitement at the prospect of working alongside Hollywood legend Carl Weathers.
"Tonight's #ChicagoMed was directed by the ONE AND ONLY Mr. @TheCarlWeathers," wrote Schram in a tweet. "I left set each day feeling inspired and excited and challenged in all the fun ways. To say we were geeking out would be an understatement."
Schram plays doctor and recovering heroin addict Hannah Asher on the hospital procedural, which is currently airing its eighth season on NBC. In the episode she's referencing, titled "We All Know What They Say About Assumptions," the Gaffney Chicago Medical Center gang deals with car accident survivors and a patient experiencing seemingly inexplicable seizures.
Why is Carl Weathers a big deal? We'll tell you...
We don't know if Jessy Schram is a giant fan of 1987's "Predator," or the "Rocky" franchise, of if she has fond childhood memories of watching the interactions between the title character and Chubbs from "Happy Gilmore," or if all three apply. The point is, Carl Weathers has been highly visible in film and television for decades, which makes him the sort of showbiz figure most actors would be psyched to work with. As an actor, Weathers is no stranger to the "One Chicago" franchise; his character, Mark Jefferies, has popped up in three branches of the sprawling TV franchise — "Chicago Fire," "Chicago Justice," and "Chicago P.D.," and in an episode of "Law & Order: SVU."
In addition to a previous episode of "Chicago Med," he's also directed episodes of a handful of shows, including "The Mandalorian" — where he also plays the morally ambiguous head of the Bounty Hunters' Guild, Greef Karga — and "Law & Order."
Incidentally, does anyone think it's weird how his characters in both "Predator" and "Happy Gilmore" are partially defined by the violent loss of right-side limbs? Dillon gets his arm torn off by the Predator, and an alligator eats Chubbs' hand. That can't possibly be a coincidence ... or maybe it's definitely a coincidence?