Lisa Edelstein Looks Back At Her Iconic Role On House 20 Years Later

Lisa Edelstein has an extensive filmography ranging from The Practice to her most recognizable role as Dr. Lisa Cuddy in the medical drama House. The show’s popularity thrived from 2004 through its series finale in 2012. With House’s resurgence on social media thanks to TikTok and celebrating its 20th anniversary, Edelstein looks back at how her iconic role affected her career up until her latest role in The Everything Pot.

Edelstein has noticed that it’s very easy to get pigeonholed into a certain type of role as an actor. “You know, our industry is funny. It’s like, as soon as you play a part that people like, that's the only part people want you to play for the rest of your life,” she told Pop Culture Planet. “So, I played a lesbian in the 90s, and I got all lesbian characters for a year and a half. I played a trans woman and I got all trans woman characters. Who knew there were that many trans characters at that moment in time before they were really telling trans stories?”

Looking back at House, it was something special that couldn’t be replicated. “With Cuddy, it was such great writing, and it was so great working across from that whole cast. It was very particular to that show and that writing, so, for a while, I kept getting offered a version of that, but sort of like a cheapened version of that in a different setting. It wasn't interesting to me,” Edelstein shared. “I wanted to really, first of all, not wear a tight skirt for at least a decade after that show and take my shoes off. Then I got Girlfriend's Guide To Divorce, which was sort of like the opposite experience where she’s sort of out of control.”

While she is grateful for the roles she’s played, she’s not looking to be limited or put in a box. “I think you have to really embrace the roles while you have it,” she said, “and then you have to really work at letting it go or that's the only thing you’ll do for a long time.”