How will ‘Scrubs’ end? Stay tuned

Before the writers strike, the biggest mystery surrounding NBC’s “Scrubs” was whether J.D. (Zach Braff) and Elliot (Sarah Chalke) would pull a Ross-Rachel and finally be together in the hospital comedy’s final season.

But now the bigger question seems to be whether fans of the 7-year-old comedy will watch the finale on NBC, ABC or DVD.

Although NBC had ordered 18 episodes for this season, meant to be its last, and 12 were completed before the strike, the network has not committed to allowing producers to complete the final six episodes.

Creator Bill Lawrence, who was not available for comment Friday, has said that he would complete his series on DVD if he has to.

According to an article on the Hollywood Reporter’s website Thursday, ABC is in talks with its studio to pick up an 18-episode season of the series, which the network has expressed interest in doing for several seasons.

The show’s owner, ABC Studios, declined to comment Friday on whether it is negotiating a deal with its sister network. And whether the show’s star, Zach Braff, would come back for another season is also a question, since he had previously said that he would not.

But Marc Graboff, co-chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, issued this statement: “NBC has a license agreement with ABC Studios, which includes an exclusive right of first negotiation and first refusal to extend the series term beyond this season. We’re living under the terms of this license agreement and we expect ABC Studios to do the same.”

NBC has scheduled “Scrubs” to return to the lineup on April 10 with five episodes that were produced before the strike began in November.

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-- Maria Elena Fernandez