Eric Foreman

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Dr. Eric Foreman
House character

Time on show	2004-present
Position	Diagnostic Medicine Fellow
First appearance	Pilot
Portrayed by	Omar Epps

This article is about the character on the American TV series "House". For the character on the American TV series "That '70s Show", see Eric Forman.

Eric Foreman, M.D. is a fictional character, portrayed by Omar Epps, on the American medical drama House.

[edit] Character

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Foreman is a member of Dr. Gregory House's team of handpicked specialists at the fictional Princeton Plainsboro Teaching Hospital, Diagnostic Medicine Department. Foreman is a neurologist and was hired by Dr. House three days prior to the pilot episode (implied in the un-aired version of the Pilot). As a graduate of Johns Hopkins Medical School, it is strongly implied that he performed the best academically, compared to his other two co-workers, an immunologist, Dr. Allison Cameron and an intensivist, Dr. Robert Chase.

Little is known about Foreman's past, although it has been suggested that his family was not very well-off and they are currently living on a pension (Season 1, Episode 10: "Histories"). Foreman was also a former juvenile delinquent who once broke into people's houses; this is said to have played a major factor in Dr. House's decision to hire him in the first place. Foreman's father, Rodney Foreman (played by Charles S. Dutton), who appeared in the episode 2.21 ("Euphoria, pt. II), is deeply religious while his mother is unfit to travel due to a medical condition which is somehow tied to her memory or perception skills such as Alzheimer's or Diabetes Mellitus.

Despite his youthful offenses, Foreman may be the best-adjusted of House's medical team. He is also shown to possess a level of leadership skills, and was temporarily appointed House's boss by Dean of Medicine Dr. Lisa Cuddy in the second season, during which time House referred to him as "Blackpoleon Blackapart". It has also been implied that Foreman and House share certain similarities (Season 1, Episode 8: "Poison"), both in terms of character and physical habits. Whether this is true or not is debatable.

Dr. Foreman is often the subject of Dr. House's jokes about race. Although House is shown to make outright racist jabs at Foreman, there is definitely a sense of mutual respect between the two characters, as seen in Season 2 Episode 16: "Safe", in which House allows Foreman to use the black marker and write on the infamous differential diagnosis white-board.

Like House, Foreman has also been shown to be extremely honest even at the cost of hurting other people's feelings. This is evident in the episode "Sleeping Dogs Lie" (Season 2, Episode 18), in which Foreman tells Cameron that the two of them were never friends, merely working colleagues. Although, during a later bout with a deadly illness (see below), he recants this position. His sincerity, given his dying state, was unclear.

In part 1 of the episode "Euphoria" (Season 2, Episode 20), Foreman became infected with an unknown condition. Another patient, infected with the same condition, experiences a very painful death before his eyes. In the conclusion of the episode, Dr. Cameron, acting as Foreman's medical proxy, performs a white-matter brain biopsy. The condition is revealed to be amoebic meningoencephalitis caused by Naegleria, a water-borne parasite that, upon being inhaled, attacks the brain. After treatment, it appears Foreman is cured of the meningoencephalitis, but something may have gone wrong during the biopsy. Although his brain had some confusion between the left and right side of the brain, he is in recovery. Upon his return from recovery, Dr. Foreman's memory seemed to have been impaired, as he struggled to remember key medical concepts ("Forever", Season 2, Episode 22) and could not remember how to make coffee. In the next two episodes, however, Foreman seems to be able to once again keep up with his fellow doctors when coming up with medical theories.

During Season 3, a change in Foreman's character, making him more sensitive to other people's feelings, can be noticed when he resists telling two interracial lovers that they are half-siblings. During the same episode he was accused of being against inter-racial relationships. He made a bet with House saying that Dr. Wilson was not dating a nurse in the hospital. The (white) nurse was actually dating Foreman, which explains his sensitivity to this particular case.

Conversively, when Detective Tritter offered an opportunity to win early parole for his drug-addicted, incarcerated brother, Foreman bluntly turned it down. Tritter sees this as hypocrisy, citing Foreman's own criminal record. Tritter says that while Foreman tries being compassionate to ward off House's training, he is actually just as cold and methodical as his employer.