Douglas Ross, M.D. is a fictional character from the NBC medical drama series ER, portrayed by American actor George Clooney. He is a pediatric fellow, employed by the pediatric service, but works in the ER. He is later promoted to a pediatric attending in the ER. He appears from the pilot episode before departing in the fifth season episode "The Storm - Part II". Clooney later made guest appearances in the sixth season episode "Such Sweet Sorrow" and in the fifteenth season episode "Old Times". Character biography Doug Ross was raised by his mother, Sarah, after his father, Ray, abandoned their family. In Season 1, Ross revealed to a patient that he had a son, and he tells nurse Wendy Goldman that he doesn't know his son's name as he's never seen him. Not much else is known about Doug's past. Doug’s estranged son was a large part of the reason that he became a pediatrician. In 2019, ER executive producer John Wells shared, “Part of the reason why he wanted to become a pediatrician and be around children and care for children is because of his guilt that he wasn’t the person he wanted to be when he had a child as a young man. That was always meant to be part of who was, but we didn’t want to turn it into a Hallmark movie.” Initially, Ross is portrayed as a womanizer who dates and leaves many women throughout the course of his time on the show. At one point, he has a one-night-stand with Harper Tracy, a medical student who had been tentatively pursued by Dr. John Carter; this leads to a rift between Ross and Carter for a time. His womanizing days abruptly end after an epileptic woman he picks up in a bar has a seizure while he drives her home and eventually dies in the ER. Ross learns her name only after her death, which prompts him to stop sleeping around and make an effort to get back together with Carol Hathaway, the head nurse of the ER at County General. The relationship between Doug and Carol, which had previously ended on bad terms prior to the pilot episode, is rekindled in fits and starts over the course of the first five seasons. Doug leaves Chicago for Seattle during season five. Character development Casting and creation George Clooney did not receive a casting call