ABC will no longer move forward with The Good Doctor spin-off, The Good Lawyer, which was set to premiere next spring.
The show was set to star Kennedy McMann (Nancy Drew) as lawyer Joni DeGroot and Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives) as Janet Stewart, top attorney at DeGroot’s law firm. Bethlehem Million also appeared in the pilot episode as Abbie DeGroot, Joni’s older sister and best friend.
A backdoor pilot of The Good Lawyer aired as an episode of The Good Doctor in March. In the pilot, Dr Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore) needs legal representation and chooses young lawyer Joni DeGroot, who has OCD. The pair bond as DeGroot is able to relate to him. The pilot was well-received and a poll conducted by TVLine showed that 90% of respondents were in favour of a full series.
TVLine praised the show for casting an actress with OCD, stating that it “adds a layer of authenticity to her performance that is felt almost instantly.”
McMann described the show as “the dreamiest dream come true”.
She announced the news that she would be joining the show in January in an Instagram post, stating: “I could say a million things … Thank you to my incredible team. Thank you to my parents & my husband who have been by side through my lifelong journey with OCD. Thank you to all of you who have made me feel safe enough to talk openly about it.”
“To be working on a project like this, to be a part of a representation of OCD in media that is genuine & true, is all I have ever wanted & more than I could have ever hoped for. To do it with this team is even better.”
The Good Lawyer is not the only spinoff to be cancelled by ABC: The Rookie: Feds (a spinoff of The Rookie) will also no longer go ahead.
Words by Ellen Leslie
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