New Amsterdam

We do know that Max left Dr. Elizabeth Wilder (Sandra Mae Frank) his successor instead of continuing their romance and not much else. Dr. Goodwin leaves the ...

Then we realized why not see the moment Luna was inspired to be a doctor like her father was and the moment when everyone was inspired to be the doctor they were? [Grey's Anatomy ](https://ew.com/creative-work/greys-anatomy/)and he said, "This is nothing like what we go through." It would have been great to have been able to resolve their stories with as much freedom, so that's a little frustrating. SCHULNER: We opened the pilot essentially with Max in the auditorium and the first thing he says is, "My sister died here, I grew up here and this is why I wanted to work here." I grew up here and that's why I wanted to be a doctor here." They were reaching out to us saying, "Good job," so we had to do something back. That's the theme we've been talking about with a number of characters. A week later, Laura Valdivia, one of our writers, pitched me the same ending and then a week after that Erika Green Swafford, another one of our writers, was on set with me and was like, "I know might sound crazy, but what if Luna came back as the medical director?" The series finale was about Max's last day. It was something floating around in the ether that month because my 11-year-old daughter pitched me that ending and I was like, "You do your school work and I'll focus on writing." Within three weeks, they all pitched me this ending and I was like, "This is our ending." In the episode's final moments, we discover the new director isn't having trouble because everyone's busy saving a life, but rather, she's having trouble because she's Max's daughter all grown-up in the future, beginning her first day following in her father's footsteps at New Amsterdam.

The hit NBC medical drama starring Ryan Eggold wrapped its fifth and final season Tuesday night in a finale full of hope.

"That was the day I realized I wanted to be just like him. In the wake of Wilder alerting Goodwin that his brand new cancer cure was a "sham," the pair discovered that Max's ex-fiancée, Helen Sharpe ( [Freema Agyeman](https://people.com/tv/new-amsterdam-star-freema-agyeman-not-returning-for-fifth-and-final-season/)) — who departed the series after the fourth season and only appeared very briefly in the final season (and never actually interacted with any characters directly!) — had been the one to green-light the trial despite obvious problems with the experiment. As for their happy ending, Wilder first had to prove instrumental in saving the life of a Ukrainian immigrant who came into the emergency room with her son. But love appeared to win the day for him as well, as a flash forward showed him and Gabrielle at a cheery family dinner full of laughter. The finale also played heavily on the New Amsterdam rallying cry of "How can I help?" And that new medical director arriving for her first day? Wilder explained all of this to Goodwin, who was overcome with emotion at the realization. Lauren Bloom (Janet Montgomery), finding a fixer-up new apartment signaled a new beginning all her own, and a future she was ready to (literally) design for herself. Floyd Reynolds (Jocko Sims) spent all five seasons in search of love and family — and realized he may have found what he was looking for in nurse Gabrielle (Toya Turner), even though she was heading off on assignment to Tanzania. Wilder jumped into action, slicing the woman's chest back open after she'd just been stitched up, ignoring Goodwin's cries to stop. The final two episodes of New Amsterdam, titled "Right Place" and "How Can I Help?" And, as she'd always hoped, she was reunited with her sister Vanessa (Kathryn Prescott) when the latter finally decided to get help for her addiction.

'New Amsterdam' bosses talk about the series finale's full-circle twist ending, Max's romantic future and whether there's hope for Sharpwin.

But when we hit on this 53-person surgery, one of the reasons to do this medical story for the finale was because it gave us the opportunity to bring back all the characters we’ve loved over five years. Was that important for you guys to address his disappearance and show that he’s been here all along? now he’s there with the one who’s right for him, and he’s able to have the family he had always dreamed of, and it’s the right time and it’s the right lady. No, I think what Peter said about Max choosing Luna is the choice we wanted him to make. As much as he loves and will always love all three of the women in his life that we got to go through, with Georgia and Sharpe and Wilder, the one that really is important to him, and the one that makes both of us love him most is that he chooses Luna. How did you approach that part of his journey and who he should or shouldn’t end up with in the end? Max in that auditorium on his first day was where we started the show, so it just felt so natural to end the show with the next medical director on her first day. So once we knew Season 5 was our last, then we had that ending before we started the season, so we knew where we were going. That and the fact that we really love ambiguity and we wanted to leave that question of his relationship with Wilder a bit in the wind. In order to set up Luna coming back as medical director in the future, but to give that audience the surprise of, “Oh, my God, that’s Luna in the future,” instead of seeing this person taking over New Amsterdam, and you thinking it’s in the present day and hiding the ball that it’s Luna, we had to have Max leave. So walk me through your thinking in terms of why you wanted to end the series with him leaving New Amsterdam in New York and moving on in this way. [New Amsterdam](https://tvline.com/tag/new-amsterdam/)‘s very final episode kicked off with a surprise announcement: Max was leaving the hospital to go work for the World Health Organization in Geneva, Switzerland.

A full recap and spoilers from New Amsterdam's series finale, airing Tuesday, January 17 at at 9/8c on NBC.

It’s the day I realized I wanted to be a doctor. She started out the episode in hopes of snagging the perfect NYC apartment (“a two-bedroom, two bath, with a view of the Hudson. And that’s the day I realized I wanted to be just like him. As it turns out, she discovered her “How can I help?” moment on the very day Max was unable to take her to the annual Manhattan Mermaid Parade. He said he had to make up an emergency just to get you off the phone. As a cancer survivor himself, Max is overjoyed to announce that New Amsterdam’s partnership with Ithaca Pharmaceuticals has led to a revolutionary cure of bulky large cell lymphoma. In a speech to the entire hospital, Max recalls the first moment he heard the words, “How can I help?,” which inspired him to be a doctor. Fast-forward to “How Can I Help?,” and Vanessa finally shows up at a meeting just as Bloom had hoped. As it turns out, the new peppy medical director we meet at the beginning of the episode is actually... We’re introduced to an enthusiastic young woman who, fresh off a run, arrives at New Amsterdam and introduces herself as the hospital’s new medical director. He’s moving to Geneva, Switzerland to work for the World Health Organization (WHO) as the head of Global Health Policy. First: Season 5, Episode 12's "Falling" and then with the series closer "How Can I Help?"

David Schulner, the creator of 'New Amsterdam,' broke down the biggest questions after the series finale on Tuesday, January 17 — read more.

Then you get to be an active part of the show too.” “As we head into the fifth and final season, we want our #Sharpwin fans to know we still have a few surprises in store for them.” Helen Sharpe have made over these past four seasons and are so grateful to have been a part of that story,” the duo said in a statement. [who had been part of the show since 2018,](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/pictures/shocking-tv-exits-2/) told TVLine in a statement in July 2022. “We wish Freema the best of luck on her next chapter and the doors of New Amsterdam will always be open if she wishes to return! Fanfic — it’s over to you to tell the rest!! She has meant so much to me, but the time has come for me to hang up her white coat, as I officially share the news that I will not be returning for the final season of New Amsterdam.” Fans were shocked when Agyeman later confirmed [she would be exiting New Amsterdam ahead of its final chapter.](https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/new-amsterdams-freema-agyeman-leaving-show-ahead-of-final-season/) “I feel very fortunate to have connected with so many of you over these past few years, while rolling around in the skin of Ms. “But a blessing because we got to end it on our terms and so few shows get to do that.” “It was a blessing and a curse to know we were ending. Amid the shocking discovery, Max wrapped up his last day as medical director in order to be more present in daughter Luna’s (Nora and Opal Clow) life.

Subscribe to our New Amsterdam Newsletter: [Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the New Amsterdam series finale “Right Place” and ...

Helen Sharpe and [exited ahead of the final season](https://www.tvinsider.com/1052835/new-amsterdam-freema-agyeman-leaving-season-5-helen-sharpe/)] with us the whole time and even [Anupam [Kher](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/anupam-kher/), who played Dr. [Freema [Agyeman](https://www.tvinsider.com/people/freema-agyeman/), who played Dr. Vijay Kapoor and [left in Season 3](https://www.tvinsider.com/995048/dr-kapoor-leaving-new-amsterdam-anupam-kher/)] with us the whole time. “Other than that, though, there’s more that we want to bring in and create,” he says. [New Amsterdam](https://www.tvinsider.com/show/new-amsterdam/) may have said goodbye after five seasons on [NBC](https://www.tvinsider.com/network/nbc/), but in a time full of revivals and spinoffs, is it really the end? Years later, his daughter, Luna (Molly Griggs), came to the hospital as its new medical director, carrying on his legacy, starting with his mantra, “How can I help?” You could follow Luna in New Amsterdam. “You could follow Max in Geneva. Do the New Amsterdam EPs have a preference? We can only sit there and charge that windmill so many times.” I guess I don’t know. There’s a real audience response to this show, and there was even while we were on NBC,” Horton adds.

We explain how Max's daughter, Luna, was involved in "New Amsterdam's" twist in the series finale.

It’s the day I realized I wanted to be a doctor. And that’s the day I realized I wanted to be just like him. Fans were first introduced to a young, enthusiastic—but unknown—new medical director at the beginning of the episode, "How Can I Help?" Go behind-the-scenes, stay on top of breaking news, hang with the stars, and much more. Read on for spoilers to find out the exciting twist that left us with a smile in New Amsterdam's last-ever episode. [Max Goodwin (Ryan Eggold)](https://www.nbc.com/new-amsterdam/credits/character/dr-max-goodwin) officially left his job as medical director to take on the impressive post as the head of Global Health Policy for the World Health Organization (WHO).

NBC's New Amsterdam ended its run after five seasons this week, and no one really understands why, including its creators. There has been some ratings ...

[TV](https://www.pajiba.com/tv_reviews/) Max left the hospital to go work for the World Health Organization, which had — in real life — [given the series a commendation for their work](https://ew.com/tv/new-amsterdam-series-finale-interview/). That didn’t happen, which may have been for the best (their relationship was a little [on the toxic side](https://www.pajiba.com/tv_reviews/is-new-amsterdam-about-to-do-us-dirty.php)), but Max and Dr. [Dustin Rowles](https://www.pajiba.com/staff/dustin-rowles-1.php) Helen Sharpe](https://www.pajiba.com/tv_reviews/what-happened-to-helen-on-new-amsterdam.php) from returning, and it felt for a moment in the penultimate episode that the series might have been charting a narrative path for her and Dr. On Max’s last day at New Amsterdam, he brought in his young daughter who was upset that Max had to work instead of taking her to a parade. It’s a very This Is Us kind of moment, but it works because New Amsterdam has never been above wearing its heart on its sleeve. There are flashbacks in the episode to the moment that inspired each of the main characters to get into medicine, and there is one patient in the episode who required surgery performed by over 50 doctors that allowed the series to involve all of the characters and illustrate the value of community in the profession. There has been some ratings erosion since its first two seasons (thanks in part to [COVID interruptions](https://www.pajiba.com/tv_reviews/whats-going-on-with-nbcs-erratic-scheduling-of-new-amsterdam.php)), but it was still popular, it still wins its Tuesday night timeslot, and it does well on Netflix (it is currently ranked among the ten most popular TV shows on the streaming service). Goodwin’s earnest desire to make the world better to the way Dr. When I lived with my son in a hospital for the better part of six months, I thought that New Amsterdam would be the last show I’d want to watch, but there The series, based on Eric Manheimer’s book, Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital, is about the oldest public hospital in the United States.