Oscar nominee set to play cancer patient

Recent Oscar nominee Hal Holbrook is making a house call to NBC's "ER," doing a guest appearance on the first night of sweeps.

Holbrook, coming off his Academy Award-nominated turn in "Into the Wild," will play a cancer patient who has a strong effect on Luka (Goran Visnjic). The episode is scheduled for Thursday, April 24.

"The show has had an amazing array of incredible actors who have walked through the doors over the years, and Hal Holbrook certainly continues that tradition," executive producer David Zabel says. "He is perfect for this role and we couldn't be more pleased to have him."

Holbrook will play Walter, whom Luka meets while visiting a hospice ward. Despite his terminal status, Walter faces what's left of his life with a positive outlook -- and has managed to outlive all the other patients at the facility. Luka re-evaluates a big decision in his life after meeting Walter.

Holbrook has won five Emmys in his career, including one for portraying Abraham Lincoln in the 1974 miniseries "Lincoln." He was also nominated for one in 1967 for his signature role as Mark Twain in a televised version of his stage show "Mark Twain Tonight!" (for which he also won a Tony).

More recent credits include guest appearances on "The Sopranos," "NCIS" and "The West Wing." Among his films are "Magnum Force," "All the President's Men" and "Wall Street."