The 'Scrubs' Reboot Includes J.D. and Elliot's Divorce After Fans Assumed They Ended up Together

When the original Scrubs ended in 2009, viewers were given a glimpse into J.D.'s future with Elliot, his longtime on-again/off-again girlfriend and fellow doctor. In that version of the ending, J.D. and Elliot ended up together with a happily ever after. However, in the reboot, which takes place 16 years after the original run, J.D. and Elliot are divorced, and fans want to know why.

The Scrubs reboot picks up with J.D. trying to find time for his two kids, one with Elliot and another with Kim, which fans saw earlier in the original series. He and Elliot are also already split up, and while fans try to figure out the timeline, they also want to know why the writers decided to split up the couple that, to some, made a lot of sense originally.

One of the biggest shocks of the Scrubs reboot, other than Dr. Cox's apparent trust in J.D. as a doctor, is J.D.'s divorce from Elliot. According to Scrubs creator Bill Lawrence, the decision to have J.D. and Elliot get divorced in the reboot made sense because for him, J.D.'s vision of his future happiness with Elliot in the series finale back in 2009 was really just J.D.'s imagining of a perfect future for the two of them.

Yep, this is a bit of revisionist history, but since the reboot is also not acknowledging the Season 9 Med School spinoff, fans might forgive the writers for making some things more canon.

"You can hope all your dreams come true just this once," Bill told TVLine. "Nothing ever turns out 100 percent happy. It's always more complicated than that."

He added that he didn't see J.D. and Elliot's relationship as one that was strong enough, based on their history. Zach Braff, who plays J.D., also chimed in to share his thoughts on the switch-up in J.D. and Elliot's relationship on Scrubs.

He said that what J.D. sees of his life at the end of the original run of the series is meant to be "what he hopes," but not actually what happens for him. At least that helps explain how there is such a big change in the reboot. Now, J.D. and Elliot are co-parents and co-workers again, and it could mean they are thrown back together in a way that brings them back together romantically. That is, if it makes sense for the reboot.

Some things, like J.D. and Elliot's relationship status, might have changed, but other things stayed the same, thankfully. Carla and Turk, whose relationship is on solid ground for most of the original series, are doing well in the Scrubs reboot. In fact, they now have four daughters.

So even if some fans are a little bummed to see Elliot and J.D.'s future different than what they expected, they can count on Turk and Carla.