LOS ANGELES — We were excited to get to know better the cast members of “The Good Doctor,” now celebrating its 100th episode this month when we visited the set recently in Vancouver, Canada.
Christina Chang, 51, is a Filipina Taiwanese-American actress who portrays Dr. Audrey Lim. She said she can’t wait to go to the Philippines and visit “the beautiful islands.”
Hill Harper, 56, an alum of Ivy League schools like Brown University and Harvard, has a lot of Filipino friends since he did Jessica Hagedorn’s “Dogeaters” play in 2001 as Joey Sands.
“That’s why I am familiar with Filipino food,” he proudly said. He portrays Dr. Marcus Andrews on the show.
Noah Galvin, 28, and Bria Henderson, 29, who portray Dr. Asher Wolke and Dr. Jordan Allen respectively, were both singing a tune when we walked into the room to interview them. Galvin, in fact, confessed that he would want to do a musical of the show. He replaced Ben Platt in the Broadway hit “Dear Evan Hansen” and also got engaged to Platt after Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 25, this year.
Paige Spara, 33, who portrays Lea Dilallo, the wife of Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore) on the show, is bubbly and down-to-earth in person and we were not surprised when she told us that she and Highmore turned into 12-year-olds especially after a long, difficult shoot.
Finally, the newbie on the show, Brandon Larracuente, 28, who portrays Dr. Daniel Perez, can be the next heartthrob doctor on television.
Below are excerpts of our interviews with them on the set.
Christina Chang (Dr. Audrey Lim) and Hill Harper (Dr. Marcus Andrews)
Harper: I love the show that it has this beautiful heart and soul about the idea that no matter who you are, no matter where you’re from, you have something to add. You add value. That rings true consistently all the time. So, difference is good, different opinions, different voices in the room are good. Diversity of opinions, diversity of ideas, diversity of backgrounds is good. That’s something that the world needs to hear and understand these days. I love the show because of that.
Chang: He said that very beautifully. Heart and hope would be the two words that I would use to describe what makes this show special and why being on it feels good.
What is it about your characters that inspires you, that you admire most?
Chang: I am inspired by her frankness. She’s fair, and I like that about her. The strong word is used a lot. Her fortitude, her persistence, her dedication to her work is admirable.
Harper: ForDr. Andrews, he is ambitious, talented, smart. He wants to see great outcomes. What a lot of people forget is that he was a “first patient” doctor. He’s about the patient, so even though it seems like he’s about himself sometimes, and he wants the power, at the end of the day, he’s about the patient. So, he makes decisions based off patient outcomes. That’s why he risked his career at one point to save Dr. Shaun Murphy, because he realized that Shaun is a great doctor who can save many patients. So, let’s not wash him out. Let’s keep him. Very proud to play Dr. Marcus Andrews, the president of St. Bonaventure Hospital.
How do you see your character’s arc in season six?
Chang: Lim has a lot of challenges that she’s up against. Once again, it’s about how does Lim rise to the occasion? How does she rise to that challenge? She’s done a pretty fantastic job. But season six lies before us. Let’s see what’s to come for her. They’re personal challenges.
Harper: And I’m excited about Dr. Andrews exploring his friendship with Dr. Lim. They’re colleagues, and they’re basically the last two characters on the show that are the most senior in the hospital on a day in, day out basis. So, that’s interesting. Right? The residents, Dr. Park and Dr. Shaun Murphy, are in many ways doing the job that they used to do early seasons such as attendings and overseeing the surgeries in the room, etc. It’s exciting to see that evolution, and then exciting to see how our relationship as being the senior folks…
Any show, no matter what you do, it’s all about the writing. If the writing’s good and the characters are interesting, and different challenges are put before the character and the actor to play, that’s always fun and exciting. And this is such a great group of people here behind the camera, as well as in front of the camera.
