With almost a decade on television, The Good Doctor has had some iconic guest stars over the years, but none have hit as close to home as Richard Schiff’s daughter, who made her debut as Dr. Aaron Glassman patient in the last episodes of the medical drama’s final season.
The Good Doctor is ABC’s procedural medical drama following Shaun Murphy, a young autistic surgeon from the small city of Casper, Wyoming, who relocates to San Jose, California, to work at the prestigious San Jose Saint Bonaventure Hospital, where he uses near-photographic recall and ability to note minute details to make medical breakthroughs.
Schiff plays Dr. Aaron Glassman, the former president of san Jose Saint Bonaventure Hospital and an attending neurosurgeon who has been a mentor to Shaun since he was 14. Schiff is one six original cast members left on The Good Doctor, along with Freddie Highmore (Shaun); Will Yun Lee (Dr. Alex Park); Fiona Gubelmann (Dr. Morgan Reznick); Christina chang (Dr. Audrey Lim); and Paige Spara (Lea Diilallo-Murphy).
News broke in January 2024 that The Good Doctor was ending with its seventh and final season. “The Good Doctor has been a once in a lifetime opportunity, but it’s time to say goodbye,” co-showrunners David Shore and Liz Friedman and fellow executive producer Erin Gunn said in a statement at the time. “We are incredibly proud of the work we’ve done and the message we’ve been privileged to be a part of. We look forward to giving our fantastic fans, the truly extraordinary Freddie Highmore, the rest of our talented actors (and friends), and the best crew in the business the series ending that you all deserve. Thank you, Sony; thank you, ABC; thank you all.”
Who’s Richard Schiff’s daughter?
Richard Schiff’s daughter, Ruby Kelley, made her debut on The Good Doctor in Season 7, Episode 7, “Faith,” in which she plays Hannah, a patient who comes to San Jose Saint Bonaventure Hospital seeking help for chronic pain. While other doctors write off Hannah as a “drug seeker,” Dr. Aaron Glassman, played by Schiff, suspects that there’s more to Hannah’s case.
Many fans suspected that Hannah reminded Glassman of his own daughter, Maddie, who killed herself from an assume overdose when she was 19 years old after Glassman threw her out of his house after he found out that she was using drugs. The story of Maddie’s death was told in Season 1, Episode 18, “More,” of The Good Doctor.
Ruby also revealed in an Instagram post that she would play Hannah for three episodes of The Good Doctor, which leads fans to think that Glassman’s bond with Hannah and how much she reminds him of his daughter may be how the series is writing out his character for the final season. “I’m gonna be on your tv for the next 3 weeks starting tn at 10pm on abc !!!! Or tm on hulu!! @thegooddoctorabc,” she captioned a photo of her on the series.
Before the episode aired, Schiff shared an Instagram post congratulating Ruby on her first episode of The Good Doctor. “Tonight and for the next three episodes a very special guest star on The Good Doctor. Introducing Ruby Kelley. She’s phenomenal. The story is even more so. #thegooddoctor #prouddad,” he captioned a carousel of photos of her on the series.
He also posted an Instagram Story encouraging viewers to watch the episode. “Don’t miss this talented girl in tonight’s episode of #TheGoodDoctor. @itsrubykelley. Trust me. She is amazing. Watch us!” he captioned the post.
So who is Richard Schiff’s daughter, Ruby Kelley? Schiff shares Ruby with his wife, Sheila Kelley. Ruby, who was born in 2000, is Schiff and Kelley’s first daughter and second child. Their first child, a son named Gus, was born in 1994. Schiff and Kelley married in 1996. Ruby also isn’t the first family member of Schiff’s who’s starred on The Good Doctor. Kelley played the role of Debbie Wexler on the series in Season 3.
While Schiff’s son, Gus, hasn’t been on The Good Doctor, he was integral to the actor taking on another role. In an interview with Game Informer in 2022, Eric Williams, the creator of the video game God of War: Ragnarok, revealed that Schiff’s son was crucial to him agreeing to voice and provide the motion capture for the character of Odin in the game.
“We didn’t think he would even take the call. He doesn’t care about video games,” Williams said. “Eventually, we were like, screw it, let’s just find out. Have him tell us no. So Richard is in the car with his son, who’s a big God of War fan, and he asked his son, ‘Do you know what this God of War thing is?’ And his son was like, ‘Just say yes. It doesn’t matter what it is, just say yes.’”
Williams continued, “And then that night his son went home and wrote two pages for Richard. He broke down the 2018 game for him so he would understand what he was getting into when he would came to meet us the next day. We walked him around, we talked to him, and all that kind of stuff.”
