Station 19 star Danielle Savre has discussed playing bisexual character Maya Bishop, praising the writing and saying that she hopes she will be able to continue playing the firefighter for “years and years to come”.
Speaking to Digital Spy, Savre said that she was thankful for the response Maya has received as an LGBTQ+ character.
“To get the response that I have and to be part of the Shondaland world, which is so great at representing the LGBTQ community, has been a huge gift,” she said. “And I just make sure I stay on course.
“Sometimes there are stories that are pitched where I’m like, ‘I don’t necessarily agree with this’. Or the Jack thing – I was worried. I’m like, ‘Okay, when is Maya going to have a female love interest too?’
“I think it’s very important not to make Maya a stereotype, and I love that they have allowed me to [have input] with the writing and how I portray her. Because usually when you do see characters who are part of that community, they are so one-dimensional or they serve a specific purpose in the show or the movie.
“With Maya, she’s a fully developed, layered, well-rounded character who has all of these complexities like everyone who is part of the LGBTQ community has.”
The star added: “I’m so lucky to get to play her, and I’m so happy that fans love her as much as they do. I love playing her. It’s been fun. It’s been a great ride, and I hope we get to do it for years and years to come.”
Over the second season, Maya has stepped up under extreme pressure and shown leadership qualities. An example of this was in episode 10, when she and Jack Gibson (Grey Damon) worked together to deal with a contagious disease inside a subway train with panicking passengers.
“I loved that Maya finally stepped up because I do think she was struggling with whether she thinks she could be a leader,” she said. “She’s inspiring and sees the best in people – but I don’t know if she really sees that.
“It’s funny, because we probably know people like this in our life. They have all the confidence in the world and you’re like, ‘Oh, they must not have any faults or any insecurities’, when really Maya didn’t know if she could lead until this episode.
“She knew she wanted to and I think she knew she had it in her, but she really needed to prove to herself that she could do it.”
There are two episodes remaining this season in the US, and (spoilers ahead) the season finale will see the Station 19 crew heading to Los Angeles to “battle a deadly wildfire raging out of control”.
Hopefully everybody will make it through the event alive.
Last week’s two-hour crossover event with Grey’s Anatomy ended in heartbreaking fashion, with Lucas Ripley dying moments after accepting Vic Hughes’ marriage proposal.
Station 19 airs on ABC in the US and on Sky Witness in the UK.
