‘Good Doctor’ Season 2: Chuku Modu on Set Despite Exit

Leaving St. Bonaventure Hospital and San Jose might be harder than it sounds. Even though Chuku Modu is leaving The Good Doctor, the actor who plays Dr. Jared Kalu was seen on the set and at the table read for season two.

Back on June 25, the Good Doctor Twitter account shared a photo of the main cast preparing for the table read for the season one premiere.

Nicholas Gonzalez (Dr. Neil Melendez), Freddie Highmore (Dr. Shaun Murphy), Antonia Thomas (Dr. Claire Brown), Hill Harper (Dr. Marcus Andrews), Tamlyn Tomita (Allegra Aoki) and Will Yun Lee (Dr. Alex Park) are sitting at the table. Modu is seen with his arm around Fiona Gubelmann (Dr. Morgan Reznick) and Paige Spara (Lea).

Modu also shared the photo on Instagram, writing “Friends” in the caption.

While it looks like Modu could have just been dropping by to say hello to former colleagues, that might not be the case. On July 3, Gonzalez tweeted a photo of the cast and producers on the set in Vancouver. Modu was sitting in the third row. David Shore, who developed the series for ABC, is sitting in the front row.

“Happiest of Birthdays to the Leader of The Band, [Shore],” Gonzalez wrote. “Thank u for assembling this wonderfully gifted group of artists. Your strong work ethic & the time you give to your family is an inspiration & I am proud to be on this journey with u, sir. Enjoy your day!”

Towards the end of The Good Doctor‘s first season, Jared ended his rough year at St. Bonaventure by getting an acceptance letter from Denver Memorial Hospital. Jared smiled after reading the letter, but we did not know if he planned to leave San Jose. The season finale surprisingly did not show Jared’s decision. Instead, we saw a patient (Kandyse McClure) accept Jared’s invitation for a date.

In April, it was reported that Modu was leaving the show, appearing to confirm that he is heading to Denver. With him leaving the show, Lee, Gubelmann, Christina Chang (Dr. Audrey Lim) and Spara were promoted to series regulars. Spara’s promotion is curious, since she left for Pittsburgh during the season, disappoinging Shaun, who was becoming romantically involved with her.

In June, The Good Doctor added Lisa Edelstein in a recurring role as an oncologist who helps Dr. Aaron Glassman (Richard Schiff). Edelstein is best known for her role as Cuddy on House.

The Good Doctor will return this fall on Mondays at 10 p.m. ET, the same timeslot in found success in during its freshman year.

Photo credit: ABC/Eike Schroter