“He had terrible PTSD”: Steven Weber opens up about his character in Chicago Med

Steven Weber's casting as Dr. Dean Archer on Chicago Med has been making headlines not just for the character's dramatic trajectory but also for the emotional resonance behind the performance. In an interview with Deadline, Weber has disclosed that his character was initially supposed to die a violent death halfway through Season 6. He said,

"When he was first on the show, he was originally conceived in a way that would have him leaving the show in a rather violent way after four or five episodes. He was a guy with a military past. He had terrible PTSD, and that’s what was going to be the explanation for what was going to be a violent demise."

He added,

"But I think the writers saw that that was an opportunity to explore the mental health issues that many veterans experience. "

Playing a character suffering from terrible PTSD, Weber has spoken about the emotional struggle in playing such a troubled and abrasive character, opening up about his own family's military history to identify with Archer's story.

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The original concept for Dr. Archer's character on Chicago Med

When Steven Weber first guest-starred on Chicago Med during Season 6, Dr. Dean Archer was a war vet suffering from severe PTSD. The narrative was meant to deal with veterans' mental health problems and the signature, volatile, and abrasive personality that could come with it.

But the show writers reconsidered, seeing a chance to explore Archer's character beyond a temporary presence. They retained the character to explore more of his psychological struggles and growth throughout the years. This also meant that the viewers got more time to become attached to this evolving character in the medical show.

The actor stated,

"I think the writers liked that, and they began including more of his backstory, which aided in his evolution into a more contented version of his originally explosive self, which helped the audience evolve in their understanding of him, too."

Archer's presence also added complexity, as his psychological issues and contentious personality existed at odds with relationships with colleagues and patients alike.

Th writer's choice also provided Weber the opportunity to construct Archer's character over several seasons, revealing more and more about his inner conflicts, physical ailments, and gradual attempts at amelioration. The choice to keep the character is proof of a higher interest in how to portray veteran mental health realistically, as opposed to reducing it to being a plot device.

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Emotional and psychological realism in the portrayal on Chicago Med

Steven Weber discussed the emotional richness that went into playing Dr. Archer, especially given the character's complex psychological nature. He said he was able to relate to Archer and enter his emotional zone because of his own life experience seeing his father, a Korean War veteran. As per Deadline, he said,

"The fact that my father was a Korean War veteran allowed me to find a connection to this character. And so over time, it allowed me to connect [Archer’s] often anti-social behavior and brusqueness to what was going on with him psychologically."

This sense of connection resulted in a realism in portraying the character that achieved the sensitivity and tension beneath his rough-around-the-edges exterior.

Weber has acknowledged that portraying such a multifaceted character on Chicago Med took a lot of emotional labor. He emphasizes the challenge of maintaining Archer's prickly qualities in equilibrium with his hidden vulnerabilities.

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Steven Weber's acting as Dr. Dean Archer on Chicago Med shows the complexity of portraying trauma and mental illness on TV. The character was originally just meant to be a flash-in-the-pan figure and have a violent deathsoon. However, the character was fleshed out into a larger tale of veterans' issues. Weber's own tie to the character through his own family's history of military service added depth and reality to Archer's frustration.

While Dr. Archer "had terrible PTSD" as part of his fictional backstory, Weber has not indicated that the role itself gave him PTSD. Instead, he does confess to the emotional challenge of portraying such a demanding character — a distinction that reinforces the distinction between acting and actual experience.

Also read: Chicago Med Season 10 cast and character guide: New faces and returning actors, explored