For seven years and an equal number of seasons, The Good Doctor has been the go-to show for a fair number of network drama fans.
There’s no shortage of medical drama fare out there for viewers to choose from, but many people chose the ABC series for its well-fleshed and unique characters and the creative avenues it takes into the same hospital strife that’s led shows like Grey’s Anatomy to broad success. The series stars the talented Freddie Highmore in the title role as autistic surgeon Shaun Murphy, who’s near-photographic recall and unique attention to detail provides him with singular capabilities in his field.
A stacked cast of supporting stars elevates the series even further, and earned it a consistent viewer base across its seven seasons. Unfortunately, the series concluded with the mid-May season 7 finale, which polished off The Good Doctor‘s story for good. There may still be hope for fans of the series, however, if rumors about a spinoff are to be believed.
Is there a Good Doctor spinoff?
Despite its conclusion, and the overall middle-of-the-road reviews that littered its seven seasons on the air, The Good Doctor sports a solid, and dedicated, fanbase. Those fans are sad to see the series end, which made news of a potential spinoff all the more exciting.
Back in 2022, reports of a legally-minded spinoff series titled The Good Lawyer started to swirl, and ABC quickly confirmed that a sister series was in development. In early 2023, news broke that ABC had received a backdoor pilot order, and three stars were tapped to lead the series. It was slated to star Kennedy McMann, Felicity Huffman, and Bethlehem Million, but then the SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild of America strikes in mid-2023 threw a wrench into those plans.
As a result of the strikes — an unfortunate victim of what is inarguably a hugely necessary movement — The Good Lawyer was abandoned. ABC announced, in late 2023, that it would not be moving forward with the legal spinoff, leaving The Good Doctor fans with no future stories to look forward to. At least they’ve still got all seven seasons of the original series to enjoy on streaming, where its accessible to enjoy either via ABC’s own website or over on Hulu.
