Netflix finally decided to dip its toes into the high-stakes world of medical procedurals with its 2025 release, Pulse. If you’ve spent any time on the platform lately, you've probably seen the thumbnail of a frantic Miami ER. It wasn't just another Grey's Anatomy clone, though it certainly tried to capture that same lightning in a bottle.
The cast of The Pulse carried a heavy burden. They had to sell us on a group of stressed-out residents at Maguire Hospital while a literal hurricane battered the coast of Florida.
Honestly, the chemistry was there. You had veterans from Lost and The Boys rubbing shoulders with rising stars from Scream. But then, just months after its April 3rd debut, the news broke: Netflix pulled the plug. It was canceled.
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The Leads: Willa Fitzgerald and Colin Woodell
At the center of the storm—both the literal hurricane and the HR nightmare—was Willa Fitzgerald. She played Danielle "Danny" Simms. If you remember her from the Scream TV series or her standout role as young Madeline in The Fall of the House of Usher, you know she does "internalized panic" better than almost anyone. Danny was a third-year resident, talented but impulsive.
Then there’s Colin Woodell. He played Xander Phillips, the Chief Resident. Xander comes from one of those "medical dynasties" that only seem to exist in TV shows—wealthy, influential, and carrying a lot of baggage.
The show starts with a massive fracture between these two.
- They had a romantic past.
- It ended badly.
- Danny reported him for sexual harassment.
This wasn't just a "will-they-won't-they" situation; it was a "can-they-even-work-in-the-same-building" situation. Woodell, who we recently saw as a young Winston Scott in The Continental, played Xander with a layer of charisma that made you question exactly what happened between the two of them.
The Supporting Staff at Maguire Hospital
While Danny and Xander were the focal point, the ensemble was surprisingly deep. Justina Machado took on the role of Natalia Cruz, the Chair of Surgery and Emergency Medicine. She’s the boss. Machado has this incredible ability to be both terrifyingly professional and deeply maternal, a skill she’s honed since her days on Six Feet Under and One Day at a Time.
The rest of the resident pool felt like a real cross-section of a high-pressure trauma center:
Jessie T. Usher (Sam Elijah): Most people know him as A-Train from The Boys, so seeing him in scrubs instead of a supersuit was a bit of a trip. Sam was Danny’s best friend and her biggest competitor for the Chief Resident spot. He was the "calm in the storm" type, which every medical show needs.
Jack Bannon (Tom Cole): A British surgical resident with a bit of a "bad boy" reputation. He was witty, charming, and clearly there to provide the comic relief and the romantic tension.
Jessy Yates (Harper Simms): Playing Danny’s younger sister, Harper was a second-year resident. A key detail that the show handled with significant grace was that Harper is a wheelchair user. The tension between the sisters often stemmed from a childhood accident that Danny blamed on their father.
Daniela Nieves (Camila Perez): The optimistic third-year med student. Every hospital needs someone who hasn't been completely crushed by the system yet, and Camila was that beacon.
Why the Cast of The Pulse Didn't Get a Season 2
It’s the question everyone asks when a show with this much talent gets axed. Variety and Deadline reported the cancellation in July 2025, just three months after the premiere.
So, what happened?
The reviews were... mixed. Some critics called it "dead on arrival," which is a bit harsh, but the "Miami hospital during a hurricane" hook might have felt a bit too niche for a global audience. Despite having Carlton Cuse (the mastermind behind Lost) as a creator, the show struggled to break into the Top 10 consistently.
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In the streaming world of 2026, if you aren't an instant viral hit, the budget for a massive medical set and a large ensemble cast becomes hard for Netflix to justify.
The Veterans: Néstor Carbonell and Jessica Rothe
It would be a crime not to mention Néstor Carbonell. The man doesn't age. After his recent stint in Shōgun and his legendary run as Richard Alpert in Lost, he showed up here as Ruben Soriano. He was the senior general surgeon who acted as a mentor to the younger, more chaotic residents.
And then there’s Jessica Rothe. If you loved the Happy Death Day movies, you likely recognized her immediately as Cass Himmelstein. She wasn't a doctor; she was a senior ER nurse. Her on-again, off-again thing with Tom Cole was one of the lighter subplots in an otherwise very heavy show.
Actionable Insights for Fans of the Series
If you’re still mourning the loss of the show or just finishing your first binge, here is how to keep up with the cast of The Pulse:
- Watch Willa Fitzgerald in Reacher: If you liked her grit as Danny Simms, her role as Roscoe Conklin is essential viewing.
- Follow Carlton Cuse’s next move: He’s still under a massive deal, and while Pulse didn't stick, his track record suggests his next project will be another big-budget swing.
- Check out The Continental: To see Colin Woodell lead a series with a completely different energy, this John Wick prequel is the way to go.
- Don't ignore the nurses: Arturo Del Puerto (Luis) and Santiago Segura (Gabriel) were the unsung heroes of the show. Both are veteran character actors who pop up in almost everything—keep an eye out for them in upcoming procedurals on NBC and CBS.
The show might be over, but the talent is everywhere. Sometimes a great cast just gets caught in a creative storm they can't outrun.