Kerry Weaver

Kerry Weaver
Laura Innes as Kerry Weaver
First appearance	September 21, 1995. (2x01, "Welcome Back Carter!")
Last appearance	April 02, 2009. (15x22, "And In The End...")
Portrayed by	Laura Innes
Information
Occupation	Emergency Physician
Title	Chief Resident (1995–1996) Attending (1996–2007) Chief of Emergency Medicine (1999–2003) Chief of Staff (2003–2006)
Family	Helen Kingsley (biological mother)
Spouse(s)	Sandy Lopez (partner, deceased)
Children	Henry Lopez

Dr. Kerry Weaver, portrayed by Laura Innes, is a fictional character on the NBC television series ER; she first appeared as a recurring character actor in season 2, and became a regular cast member in season 3. In January 2007, Innes left the show after 12 years with the character of Kerry Weaver moving to Florida.

Very little of Weaver's background was revealed to the audience early on. The character exhibits a limp in her gait, which is aided by the use of a forearm crutch, later revealed to be caused by congenital hip dysplasia in episode 14 of season 11, and that she had lived for a period in Africa.

Weaver arrived at County General as Chief Resident and later became an attending physician. She was promoted to Chief of Emergency Medicine and finally Hospital Chief of Staff. Her administrative position often forced her to make unpleasant decisions that drew hostility from her fellow physicians, as when she fired Jeanie Boulet in Season 4. Having had some heterosexual relationships, Weaver was eventually revealed to be a lesbian. Her sexual orientation was a key point in some of the episodes, particularly when she fought in court to keep her son, Henry.

Weaver appeared in the third largest number of episodes after John Carter and Chuny Marquez. She was included in AfterEllen.com's Top 50 Lesbian and Bisexual Characters.

During Innes' first six seasons on the show, little was revealed about the details of Weaver's background which would later become some of her defining traits: her sexual orientation, political beliefs, and even the precise nature of her disability. These were closely guarded secrets for a woman who wanted to succeed professionally, but feared discrimination. She was also unable to fully deal with her internalized homophobia and regretted that she never knew her birth parents.