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Sam Fortner (Domhnall Gleeson) finally confronts his father in the finale of The Patient. If you think Lance Guest, the actor who plays Sam’s dad in FX’s Hulu series, looks familiar, you may have seen him in other movies and TV shows. Find out what else The Patient guest star has appeared in. 

[SPOILER ALERT: Spoilers ahead regarding The Patient finale episode 10 “The Cantor’s Husband.”]

Hunter Foster, Robert Britton Lyons, Elizabeth Stanley and Lance Guest, who appears in the finale episode of 'The Patient'
Hunter Foster, Robert Britton Lyons, Elizabeth Stanley and Lance Guest attend the opening of ‘Million Dollar Quartet’ in 2010 | Jim Spellman/WireImage

‘The Patient’ Episode 10: Sam confronts his father but doesn’t kill him

After believing he has to kill his father to be free of his murderous tendencies much like serial killer Ed Kemper, Sam Fortner pays his father a visit in the finale episode of The Patient. “You were a weird kid,” Sam’s father tells him during their confrontation. “You couldn’t follow rules, you didn’t play games, you didn’t have any friends.” Sam’s dad apologizes for the way he treated him as a boy, but that doesn’t stop Sam from attacking. 

Sam knocks his father’s chair to the ground and begins choking him like he did with all of his other victims. However, unlike the others, Sam let’s his father live. “My therapist said not to kill you,” Sam says, then returns to Alan (Steve Carell) — who is still a prisoner in his basement — for a session. 

Lance Guest movies and TV shows outside of ‘The Patient’ 

Prior to his appearance in The Patient, Guest appeared in the 2021 film Traces. He also has a role in the upcoming film Altered Perceptions, which is in post-production at publication (via IMDb). The Patient viewers might also recognize Guest from: 

  • The Hideaway
  • An Ill Wind
  • The Get Together 
  • No One Ever Said 
  • Night of the Wolf 
  • 21 and a Wake-up
  • The Least of These 
  • Flu Bird Horror 
  • Jericho
  • Alibi
  • Shadowbox
  • House
  • NYPD Blue
  • Bitter Winter 
  • JAG
  • The Jennie Project 
  • Mach 2
  • Stepsister from Planet Weird 
  • Then Came You
  • Thanks
  • Becker
  • Plan B 
  • The Burning Zone 
  • Party of Five 
  • The X-Files 
  • All-American Girl 
  • Hart to Hart Returns 
  • Life Goes On 
  • The Wonder Years 
  • Knots Landing 
  • Favorite Son
  • The Wizard of Loneliness 
  • Jaws: The Revenge
  • Waiting to Act 
  • My Father, My Rival 
  • ABC Afterschool Specials 
  • Just the Way You Are
  • The Last Starfighter 
  • The Roommate
  • Confessions of a Married Man 
  • St. Elsewhere
  • Lou Grant 
  • I Ought to Be in Pictures 
  • Halloween II
  • Please Don’t Hit Me, Mom
  • Why Us?
  • Dallas 

Lance Guest played Johnny Cash in the play ‘Million Dollar Quartet’ 

Previously, Guest was part of the stage production Million Dollar Quartet, a show that brought Dec. 4, 1956 — the night Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins gathered at Sun Records in Memphis for a jam session — to life. Guest appeared on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon and the Late Show with David Letterman as his character, Johnny Cash. 

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Why ‘The Patient’ Actor Who Plays Mary, Emily Davis, Looks so Familiar

Like his co-stars, Guest played a live instrument in the production. “I’ve always felt it was important that the actors play their own instruments in this show,” he told Broadway.com “Not many shows do what we do, and I’m so happy it worked.”

See Guest in The Patient finale. All episodes of the FX series are now available to stream on Hulu. 

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