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The Pitt star Patrick Ball left in tears revealing how show helped him pay $80K debt: 'Thought I was gonna die with it'

Patrick Ball plays Dr Langdon in the acclaimed drama The Pitt. It is the first major role on TV for the 36-year-old.

Updated on: Apr 9, 2026, 10:56:57 IST
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The success of Noah Wyle-starrer medical drama The Pitt has been unprecedented. The show, which features a large ensemble cast of fresh and unknown faces, has been a sensational hit, winning awards and topping ratings charts through its first two seasons. One of the breakout stars of the show is Patrick Ball, who plays the disgraced ER resident Dr Langdon on the show. The show is the 36-year-old’s first lead role after a decade of struggles. In a recent interview, Patrick broke down in tears, revealing how the show saved him from debt.

Patrick Ball says The Pitt helped him pay off debt

Patrick Ball in a still from The Pitt.
Patrick Ball in a still from The Pitt.

Patrick Ball studied journalism at the University of North Carolina before dropping out to pursue acting. After starting work in theatre, he completed a BFA from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. This education led him to incur $80,000 in student loan debt.

In an interview with Cultured Mag, when asked how The Pitt helped him, Patrick paused and broke down, before responding, “I paid off my student loans like three months into The Pitt, and that was a really profound moment ‘cause I thought I was gonna die with it. It’s a huge burden to carry, and a lot of people carry it. I was $80,000 in debt, and I had been through a series of failed relationships where my financial insecurity was a real problem. I had just thought that was going to be my life forever, and that is a really heavy thing to live with. Paying off those student loans and getting back to zero, I remember being like, Man, if this show works, great. If it doesn’t work, they can’t take that away from me. I am out of debt. No take-backsies on that.”

Each season of The Pitt tells the story of a single day, a 15-hour shift, of the staff working in the emergency room of a Pittsburgh hospital. Noah Wyle stars as Dr Michael "Robby" Robinavitch, the attending physician. The ensemble cast also includes Tracy Ifeachor, Patrick Ball, Katherine LaNasa, Supriya Ganesh, Fiona Dourif, Taylor Dearden, Isa Briones, Gerran Howell, and Shabana Azeez. The show won five Emmys for its first season, including Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Casting. The second season is currently airing.

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abhimanyu Mathur

Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Film Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world.

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