The Good Doctor Plans to Return With a Coronavirus Episode, Once It Can Start Filming

Put on a mask, Freddie! Photo: Darko Sikman/ABC

Maybe Freddie Highmore will be the one to cure us all. I mean, probably not, but I’m willing to rely on a TV doctor for hope at this point. Per TVLine, ABC’s big drama series is planning to return for its fourth season with an episode that will “focus on the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.� Most of the medical dramas on TV will probably have to address the pandemic in some form, and Grey’s has also said it has plans to do so. Notably, The Good Doctor hasn’t yet filmed its episode, given the existence of said ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and the show’s producers are currently involved in a complex negotiation with the local authorities in Vancouver over safety measures, and specifically testing procedures. According to Deadline, one big issue involves the fact that while Sony TV wants to institute frequent tests for the cast and crew members, based on SAG-AFTRA’s guidelines for filming in a pandemic, the local crew unions want fewer tests, based on the guidelines in British Columbia. The Good Doctor was set to be the first U.S. show to start production again in Vancouver, and to start filming as early as next week, but apparently everything has been put on hold, and the crew has been laid off. The cast has already flown in for a mandatory two-week quarantine, however, so whenever that’s over we guess Freddie Highmore will just wander around Vancouver in a mask alone or something.