Noah Wyle's 5 Best TV Shows, According To IMDb

Since the early 1990s, Noah Wyle has been a stalwart figure on the small screen, his warm and charismatic presence a welcome feature on all of our television sets. And although he rose to fame with his work on one of the decade's most popular medical dramas, he's since made appearances in a variety of different genres. His shows have run the gamut from dystopian science fiction and throwback adventure series to more intimate, character-driven dramas.

Most actors would consider themselves lucky to have just one genuinely memorable TV character to their names — Noah Wyle has a handful, and he's still going strong. He even earned his very first Emmy award in 2025, a welcome cap to a lengthy career in television. But while Wyle can always be relied upon to put in an excellent performance, not all of his shows are created equal. Here are the very best television series he's worked on, as ranked by the fine folks at IMDb.

Noah Wyle spent a lot of the 2000s and 2010s with shows that aired on TNT, the most famous of which was probably "Falling Skies." Set in the aftermath of a devastating alien invasion, it revolves around the surviving human population and their resistance efforts as they fight back and attempt to reclaim the planet. Wyle plays Tom Mason, a father and former history professor who is a leader in a Massachusetts-based militia (at least at the beginning of the series — believe it or not, he actually goes on to become the president of a new iteration of the United States). 

Over the course of the show's five seasons, Mason and his compatriots are put through the wringer, giving audiences a surprisingly realistic glimpse of what a ground war between humans and aliens might actually look like. Although it didn't have the grandest budget in the world, Steven Spielberg's involvement in the series as an executive producer ensured that "Falling Skies" was appropriately epic in scale, and it's one of the network's most compelling (completed!) dramas. This is thanks in large part to Wyle's commanding presence in the lead role, making it a must-watch for sci-fi fans.

After "ER" went off the air, Noah Wyle nestled into a very lucrative side career as The Librarian, a member of an ancient organization responsible for serving as the caretakers to a collection of magical objects. This role began with a series of made-for-TV movies on TNT, operating as a sort of low-budget take on Indiana Jones, but in 2014, it received a series run with "The Librarians." 

Unlike in the films where there can only be one Librarian, the spin-off series revolved around a group of new recruits for the organization, played by Rebecca Romijn, Christian Kane, John Harlan Kim, and Lindy Booth. Each trains to become part of this secret, elite team, joined by (of course) Noah Wyle's Flynn Carsen, aka The Librarian. "The Librarians" ran for four seasons, as its heroes got into all manner of supernatural adventures. And although it ended in 2018, it was successful enough that it generated another spinoff series, "The Librarians: The Next Chapter," which began its first season in 2025 (sans a newly-busy Wyle).

For a generation of viewers, "ER" was the medical drama that audiences tuned into week after week, pushing the envelope beyond what was normally expected on network television. Fast-paced, inventive, and intelligent, "ER" followed a cast of emergency room doctors and nurses through each and every chaotic shift. And Noah Wyle, who began the show as the cheerful, idealistic medical student John Carter, was there from the very start. 

The young scion of a wealthy Chicago family driven to do more than simply watch his investment accounts grow, Carter became one of the most beloved figures on the show. And although "ER" could often seem like a revolving door of faces, as actors joined and left the show over the years, Wyle was a principal cast member for the first 11 seasons of "ER," giving audiences an opportunity to see his character grow and change in ways they couldn't have anticipated. From plucky, privileged intern to confident, altruistic attending, John Carter's time on the show represents "ER" at its very best.

If there's one thing audiences will eat up over and over again, it's a good heist team. That's what viewers loved about the original "Leverage," a series on TNT that revolved around five crime experts who use their skills as modern day Robin Hoods, fighting back against institutional injustices via thievery. That series ran from 2008 to 2012 before being cancelled after five seasons. But in 2021, it made a triumphant comeback with "Leverage: Redemption." 

The new show followed many of the characters from the original (with most actors reprising their roles), but there were a few new additions, including Noah Wyle's Harry Wilson. Here, Wyle plays not a doctor, but a lawyer who takes on the role of the team's fixer in an effort to redeem himself for some of the sketchier court cases he was involved in. He's a key part of the first two seasons of the series, but had to scale back his involvement in the third season (released in 2025) as the result of his shooting schedule for what would become his most critically acclaimed role.

The number one Noah Wyle show should come as no surprise to anyone. Although it's only been on the air for two seasons, "The Pitt" has become a massive hit, rivaling the buzz surrounding his earlier medical drama, "ER." With each season told over the course of a single shift, we get incredible insight into the chaos of a understaffed and underfunded urban emergency room, and the toll it takes on those who work there. Wyle plays the chief surgical attending Michael "Robby" Robinavitch, who does his best to lead the crew of doctors, residents, medical students, and nurses while struggling with his own traumas. 

The show has a talented ensemble cast, and part of its success has to be attributed to how well the writing and performances blend to make audiences care about every single one of them. But as the elder statesman of the production (and in many ways what John Carter might have grown into if "ER" had followed him into his 50s), he's the steady (well, sometimes) presence that grounds the production. It was for this critically-acclaimed role that Wyle won his first Emmy in 2025 for best lead actor in a drama series, so its position on this list is entirely deserved.