A new, already fifth, season of the Good Doctor medical procedure has started at Amediatek. In an interview, one of the main actors of the series, Freddie Highmore, told how the pandemic changed his attitude towards the role, what future he sees for the show and whether he plans to change the scalpel for a kitchen knife.
29-year-old Briton Freddie Highmore has a rather curious creative path. His first major role at the age of 13 was Charlie in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, from where he logically migrated to the fantasy Spiderwick: The Chronicles.
In 2013, Freddie made a knight's move and proved that even behind innocent blue eyes an infernal serial killer could be hiding. In Bates Motel, Highmore played the young Norman Bates from Hitchcock's Psycho. After spending five years in the image of a growing maniac, the actor abruptly returned to a positive role.
Since 2017, the actor has been working as a "Good Doctor" - an autistic Sean, who has an unconventional approach to solving numerous medical problems. The fifth season of the series has already been released on the Amediatek. In it, Sean will have to carry out his most dangerous and exciting operation - to organize a wedding with his beloved.
How has the pandemic affected your show, both story-wise and off-screen?
We have already touched on this topic in the last, fourth, season - we understood that we simply could not get around the pandemic. Not just because this is a hot topic, but rather because we really wanted to pay tribute to real doctors. They risk their lives daily to save ours.
And we, the actors, can only guess what it is like for them. We pretend, and they really live like that. In general, playing a doctor is a real honor these days.
Any medical show automatically resonates with a wide variety of viewers. What is the most common thing you are told when you meet?
For me personally, the most important and most enjoyable thing is to hear the stories of people with autism and their loved ones. In moments like this, you realize that you are doing more than just filming a television series. Hopefully, thanks to The Good Doctor, people will begin to better understand autism. And those who already live with him will finally see situations on the screen with which they can compare themselves.
Still, it's important to understand that my Sean is physically unable to represent everyone with autism spectrum disorder. We tell the story of a specific character, we try to make it as detailed and elaborated as possible.
How do you get into this challenging role? Do you feel that you are "switching", or does everything happen organically?
When you play someone for a long time, it becomes easier for you to get used to the character. I can’t say that I have a proven scheme or tactic. In Sean's case, I study a lot of related materials (books and documentaries) to understand how autistic people see the world and behave. In addition, a consultant has been working with us from the very first episode. I believe that without this, it would be simply unethical to tell this story.
How did this role affect you in general?
I would like to believe that I was recharged with the optimism of my hero. We British people are cynical by nature. And we have a right to this: we are always dissatisfied with something. And Sean is always positive, so he always helps me see the world in a new light.