On The Set With ‘Royal Pains’ For The Emotional Series Finale

Tomorrow night, Royal Pains will take its final bow. The medical drama/soap opera/perennial summer getaway has run on USA for eight long seasons. On a perfect day last September, we were invited to visit the set of Royal Pains as they shot their very last episode. We got to talk to the cast and producers as they shot the series’ final moments.

Royal Pains follows the trials and triumphs of Dr. Hank Lawson (Mark Feuerstein) and his ambitious younger brother Evan (Paulo Costanza) as they build their medical concierge company HankMed in the luxurious Hamptons. In between seeing dramatic moments play out and watching quick set changes, the biggest thing we noticed about the show was how much it revolved around the spirit of family. It’s a tender theme that only found its way into Royal Pains because of a casting fluke.

“It’s so funny because when we auditioned for these roles, the roles were Hank Lawson and Evan Waxman — his best friend,” said series star Mark Feuerstein. “It was only when Paulo [Costanza] came in with his hair and his schnoz matching my hair and my schnoz that the writer, Andrew Lanchewski, decided to make us brothers. And it’s been such a gift because for seven years, we’ve got to play stories about family.”

“It ended up being the best thing that ever happened to the show creatively because it really cemented the theme of family as the underpinning of our storytelling,” said Lanchewski.

The cast’s closeness is also something that’s carried over off-screen. “Mark and I have as complete a relationship as you can have without consummating it sexually,” Costanza deadpanned, before reflecting more on their relationship. “We’ve come to an incredibly mature place where we just have utter mutual respect for each other – dramatically, comedically, professionally and personally. And emotionally.”

Royal Pains is famous for its opulent sets. The show takes place in the Hamptons, the playground of the rich and a setting forever associated with F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. We were lucky enough to join the cast and crew on their last day at shooting at the famed Oheka Castle. Evidently, the first thing that everyone now says upon arriving at the hotel/estate/dream house is that it’s “the house from Taylor Swift’s ‘Blank Space!’” It’s a fact that irks Lanchewski to no end. He grumbled in the video village that Swift didn’t find the location — he did. (Actually, Orson Welles is the first person to use the expansive Hamptons estate on film in Citizen Kane, but we get what he’s saying.)

Feuerstein opened up to us about what it was like saying goodbye to the show and iconic set after seven years. “It’s a very weird day on the set of Royal Pains because first of all, we have a tandem unit, which means there’s two units shooting different stuff. It’s our last day shooting at Oheka Castle. I’m shooting a scene with my brother right now where we’re saying goodbye to each other on some level. You know, every word of this scene feels like I’m talking about the show.”

“I say to him, ‘I love you, too, and I love what we did together out here. All the people Hank Med helped.’ I’m really saying I love this show that we made together.”

The feeling was echoed by the rest of the cast and crew. Executive producer Michael Rauch called the day “incredibly bittersweet.” He continued to describe how everyone felt “an enormous amount of responsibility to the show, to the characters, to ourselves, and especially the fans to deliver a series finale that was creatively and emotionally satisfying.”

While most of the cast and crew seemed confident that they were giving the popular series a fitting send off, frequent guest star Campbell Scott (Boris) the tiniest bit of doubt. “I don’t know. Does an ending ever satisfy the fans? And I speak as a fan myself! You know, part of the nature of television is you don’t want it to end or you think that those people will be with you all the time.”

In between gabbing about Eataly and giving incomprehensibly wonderful life advice, Henry Winkler (who plays the Lawson brothers’ father Eddie) spilled that he was such a big fan of the show that he almost sabotaged his shot of being on it! “When I met the two executive producers, they took me to the tavern in California for breakfast. I had watched the show. I knew every episode! I was so nervous when I ordered my pancakes that I picked up a little jug and I poured buttermilk for my coffee all over my pancakes. I look down and now they’re white, swimming in cream, and I say, ‘Well, I do this all the time because it adds to the flavor.’ I was so nervous.”

He smiled and added, “And here we are on the last episode.”

The milestone of a day naturally evoked feelings of nostalgia. “It’s specifically weird because this castle has a million memories of the show,” said Costanza. “I remember the pilot episode — one of the first things we ever shot was right here — it was filled with beautiful extras because it was a huge party scene. I can see them in my mind because that’s how clear it was. In the middle of shooting one of the guests at the hotel – this big, huge man — waltzed right in during a take and screamed, ‘I DON’T CARE ABOUT THIS STUPID SHOW! I’M GOING TO GO RIGHT IN.’ And Marc tried to physically stop him and he went right through everybody,” the actor laughed.

We got to catch up with the cast and producers again a few weeks ago before the show’s panel at the ATX Festival. Everyone had just been reunited after months apart.

“We laid it to rest in the most proper and beautiful and grateful way,” said Feuerstein. “It’s now almost a year later since we wrapped and I think we’re all so grateful to be here to relive the glory of the show.”

“I have moments of real tender sadness, like and appropriate sadness. Like ‘Wow, that’s amazing that we did all that and it’s not going to happen anymore,'” added Costanza. “This is really special. It’s hitting me right at this exact second how special it is that I can see everyone of you. It’s such a special group of people.”

Lanchewski said, “These characters who formed a family are a family onscreen and off. We get to see each other and hug each other and have a weekend that feels like a family reunion vacation. It’s amazing.”

When Royal Pains makes its bow on USA tomorrow night, the fans will have to finally say goodbye to the cast of characters that entertained them for eight long summers. “The people I’ve met over the years who love the show, it’s because it’s like a summer gas for them,” Campbell Scott mused last autumn. “They love the boys, they love Reshma, and they think Boris is a kick. The procedural part of the show keeps it interesting, but I think they like the boys.”

The good news is if you ever miss “the boys,” you can always see them again on streaming.

[Watch Royal Pains on Netflix]

The season finale of Royal Pains airs on USA tomorrow night at 10/9 C.

[Photos: Everett Collection]