The Good Doctor is returning in the 2024 TV schedule as ABC brings back some of its biggest dramas from a prolonged hiatus, and the medical series enters its seventh and final season. The Season 6 finale ended on a happy note for Shaun (Freddie Highmore) and Lea (Paige Spara) after the birth of their son, although the episode also said goodbye to another character and left Shaun's relationship with Glassman (Richard Schiff) in rocky territory. Now, co-showrunner and executive producer Liz Friedman has opened up to CinemaBlend about the new challenges facing the new parents in Season 7.
The seventh season premiere of The Good Doctor on February 20 is called "Baby, Baby, Baby," which is an extremely fitting title considering where Season 6 left off for Shaun and Lea. After the last episode aired all the way back in early May 2023, I asked Liz Friedman how the team approached the time jump in light of the WGA writers strike and SAG-AFTRA actors strike delays, and she shared:
We talked about it a bit, and I do like whenever people ask, 'When does this episode occur?' We generally say, 'Well, it happens whenever it airs.' That's the season we go for and whatnot. With this, we thought a little bit about, 'Oh, is there a gap that we could explore that would mirror the gap that's been there for the audience?'
The Good Doctor hasn't always started with a time jump right off the bat, as Season 6 picked up where the fifth season finale (available streaming via Hulu subscription) ended with the stabbing of Dr. Lim. While the sixth season ended on a much happier note for Shaun and Lea with the birth of their son after their previous pregnancy tragedy, The Good Doctor once again isn't skipping ahead months. The co-showrunner continued:
But really, I have two kids, and just knowing that those changes in your life are so instantaneous, and they kind of just whack you so hard right off the top of being a parent that we really wanted to jump back in and give Shawn and Lea just a little moment to catch their breath with baby Steve. They had a little time to themselves, but now it was time for him to go back to work, and that was really where we thought it was best to start telling the story, so that's what we did.
The show isn't going to just skip the first ten months of Baby Steve's life, so fans will get to see Shaun and Lea as pretty new parents. They prepared as best the could for the arrival of their son in Season 6, but it seems safe to say that they're going to run into some hurdles as he returns to work. Plus, there are some complications for the couple beyond their newborn.
Still, when I noted to the co-showrunner that we'd lose a lot of seeing Baby Steve if there was a time jump of the better part of a year, Liz Friedman responded:
I know! You can't, and it's just like magic then. And also you're so trying to get your sea legs under you as a new parent. There was just too much good stuff in there for us to miss it.
Considering how far Shaun has come over the years from where he started, it would have been a shame to miss the early days of this new chapter of his life as a dad. Of course, despite Baby Steve's arrival before the final credits rolled in 2023, there wasn't a happy ending on all fronts.
Dr. Glassman was still angry with Shaun for going to Lim about his problems performing surgery, although he did give the couple the gift of a blanket with the baby's name on it, showing that he still knew Shaun well enough to know that his son would be named after his late brother. When asked if the icy relationship could have a bit of a thaw in light of Steve's arrival, Friedman previewed:
Well, babies do have a way of healing all wounds, although it's going to take a little bit for Shaun and Glassman to find their way back to each other. And it's going to happen in a couple stages, and I think that'll be a really interesting journey for them.
Fans shouldn't despair that Shaun and Glassman will never mend fences before the end of the series following its unexpected cancellation. Those fences just won't be mended ASAP! Based on the trailer, there will be plenty happening beyond the two finding their way back to each other. Take a look:
Tune in to ABC on Tuesday, February 20 at 10 p.m. ET for the final season premiere of The Good Doctor, following the Season 6 premiere of The Rookie at 9 p.m. and the Season 2 premiere of Will Trent at 8 p.m. This represents a time slot change for The Good Doctor, which previously aired on Monday nights.
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