Why The Good Doctor Getting Canceled Is So Surprising, According To Insider Info
With primetime still not quite back to normal after the Hollywood strikes, the 2024 TV premiere schedule is at least looking more stocked than the back half of 2023. That said, audiences will be saying farewell to a surprising number of popular series in the coming months, such as The Good Doctor, which ABC canceled less than two months ahead of the Season 7 premiere. While cancellations certainly aren’t a rarity, news about the medical drama’s fate still came as a surprise both to fans and industry insiders, given its relatively steady success.
While the cast reactions to the cancellation haven’t been as steeped in shock as others responses, it’s possible more candid opinions will surface down the line. So why is it so surprising to hear about The Good Doctor ending after seven seasons? It’s not just one blanketed reason, so let’s break things down a bit.
The Good Doctor Is Still A Ratings Winner For ABC
The Freddie Highmore drama reportedly capped off its sixth season as the #1 entertainment show airing during the third primetime hour of 10:00 p.m. ET. And while The Good Doctor has certainly been a victim of the same overall drops in ratings and viewership as the bulk of all broadcast fare in recent years, it’s still doing comparatively well to other shows both on ABC and on other networks.
What’s more, The Good Doctor even managed to pull off a minor boost in total viewers from Season 5 to Season 6, most notably through delayed DVR viewing. So it isn’t entirely a numbers thing.
Freddie Highmore Was Reportedly Interested In Continuing
As it often goes with broadcast series contracts, Freddie Highmore’s deal was reportedly set to expire following the seventh season, and negotiations would have been necessary to continue forward. But according to Deadline, no producers or network execs ever set up any meetings with the actor for those details to be discussed.
Which is perhaps surprising, since the outlet also alleges that Highmore was interested in potentially continuing as Dr. Shaun Murphy into Season 8 and possibly beyond. Had he been skittish about the future, or if he had any specific changes to request, it might have explained why no higher-ups were on board, but no such strife has been publicized. So it seemingly isn’t a cast negotiation problem.
The Good Doctor’s Budget Was Under Control
One of the biggest issues facing long-running shows is rising costs, including filming specifics and pay raises for the cast and crew. But even that doesn’t seem to have been a major problem for The Good Doctor, which films in the finance-friendly Vancouver, and didn’t seem to be in need of changing locations.
