Wyle hints he’s eyeing ‘ER’ exit

Noah Wyle, the last continuous on-air link to the NBC medical drama “ER’s” freshman season in 1994, seems headed for the doctor’s retirement home.

Wyle, who plays Dr. John Carter, told E! Entertainment Television on Thursday that he planned to leave the show at the end of this season, when his contract expires.

“I’ve just got other stuff going in my life right now,” Wyle said. “I’ve got a son, I’ve got family and friends that said goodbye to me 12 years ago and are wondering when I’m coming back, and this little urge to scratch a different kind of itch in my career, and it’s just coming to the end of the character’s run.”

Wyle’s spokesman, Eddie George, said later that the actor hadn’t told “ER” producers of his plans and added, “There’s a lot of things that could happen between now and the end of the season.”