Best Medicine


Best Medicine is an American medical comedy drama television series based on Doc Martin, an ITV series created by Dominic Minghella. The show premiered on Fox on January 4, 2026.

Premise

Brilliant but brusque Dr. Martin Best moves from Boston to a small practice in the small fishing village of Port Wenn, Maine where he vacationed as a child. He struggles to integrate with the locals as well as a pathological blood phobia which developed during an operation on a young girl, while reconnecting with his aunt, a local lobster woman.

Cast

Main

  • Josh Charles is Martin Best, MD, based on Dr. Martin Ellingham in the British series.
  • Abigail Spencer is Louisa Gavin, a schoolteacher based on Louisa Glasson in the British series.
  • Josh Segarra is Mark Mylow, the town's sheriff and Louisa's ex-fiancé. He is based on the character of the same name in the British series.
  • Cree is Elaine Denton, Dr. Best's administrative assistant who wants to become a YouTube influencer. She is based on Elaine Denham in the British series.
  • Annie Potts is Aunt Sarah, Dr. Best's aunt and the local lobster woman. She is based on Dr. Ellingham's aunt Joan Norton in the British series.

    Recurring

  • Stephen Spinella is Greg Garrison, the proprietor of The Salty Breeze, who refers to himself and his significant other as the "Dynamic Duo"
  • Jason Veasey is George Brady, Greg's significant other and the executive chef of The Salty Breeze
  • Carter Shimp is Al Large, Bert's son and coworker. He is loosely based on the character of the same name in the British series.
  • John DiMaggio is Bert Large, a local contractor. He is loosely based on the character of the same name in the British series.
  • Clea Lewis is Sally Mylow, the town's pharmacist and Mark's mother. She is loosely based on the character of Sally Tishell in the British series.
  • Didi Conn as Geneva Potter
  • Cindy De La Cruz as Jeannie
  • Wattson as Copernicus
  • Buzz Roddy as Larry Jackson
  • Martin Clunes is Dr. Robert Best. Clunes played the lead role in the British series.

    Episodes

Production

Development

On May 9, 2025, Best Medicine received a straight-to-series order from Fox. The series is wholly owned and produced by Fox Entertainment. Doc Martin was brought to the United States by Propagate Content, alongside All3Media. The American adaptation is written and executive produced by Liz Tuccillo. Propagate's Ben Silverman is an executive producer with Rodney Ferrell, Tuccillo, and Doc Martin executive producers Mark Crowdy and Philippa Braithwaite.

Casting

The cast is led by Josh Charles as Dr. Martin Best. In July 2025, Abigail Spencer, Josh Segarra, Annie Potts, and Cree joined the main cast. In September 2025, Didi Conn, Clea Lewis, Stephen Spinella, Jason Veasey, John DiMaggio, Carter Shimp, Cindy De La Cruz, and Wattson were cast in recurring roles. In October, it was announced that original Doc Martin star Martin Clunes appears in the role of Martin Best's father.

Filming

On August 5, 2025, it was reported that the series began filming in Cornwall, New York.

Broadcast

The series premiered on Fox on January 4, 2026.

Reception

The series holds a 77% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 13 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Best Medicine may not refine the medical procedural genre, but it does offer something far more enchanting; compassion, heart and a charming lead that graces all." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 56 out of 100 based on five critics, indicating "mixed or average".