‘The Good Doctor’ Spoilers: Sexual Harassment Will Be An Ongoing Story, Actress Reveals
The Good Doctor’s midseason finale tackled a hot topic relevant to what’s currently going on in society – sexual harassment. It can be recalled that Dr. Claire Brown, played by Antonia Thomas, became a victim of inappropriate behavior when one of her colleagues, Dr. Matt Coyle (Eric Winter), tried to make a move on her. But this big issue hasn’t died down yet, and it will still be tackled in the coming episodes, Thomas has revealed.
In an interview with Parade, the British actress reveals how the hospital is going to address the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace. It can be recalled in The Good Doctor’s midseason finale that Claire’s fellow surgeon, who also happens to be her friend (and fling), Dr. Jared (Chuku Modu), stepped up to protect her by assaulting Dr. Coyle in the locker room. This resulted in Jared being fired from the hospital.
But as for Dr. Coyle, Thomas shared that the hospital will simply “move him to a different place to keep him quiet.” But Thomas’ character doesn’t want to go down without a fight. She then thought it was best to contradict the superiors’ decisions. Dr. Claire will even start her own campaign to oust Dr. Coyle by asking other women who have previously worked with him and left their jobs after having experienced being sexually harassed. To achieve this, Dr. Claire did her own investigation and research on Coyle’s female victims and talked with each of them.
Thomas also said that the sexual harassment episode will continue on and will serve as an ongoing story that will later unfold in the coming episodes of The Good Doctor.
The Good Doctor producer David Shore also told Entertainment Weekly that the sexual harassment storyline was created way before the Harry Weinstein allegations became big news. However, there were minor changes done once the news broke out.
“We did a rewrite but only because we would have done that anyway. We suddenly became very aware. We knew we were dealing with something important, but it became a much more sensitive issue. A different eye was brought to it.”
Dr. Kalu’s case, on the other hand, will have lawyers involved, Shore revealed, and this should help him get out of his predicament. As for Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore), fans have yet to see him return to St. Bonaventure Hospital. The EP confirmed that he will disappear and “will go on a little journey” to find answers on what he wants to do in life.
The Good Doctor returns to ABC on Jan. 8, 10 p.m. ET.
