New Amsterdam is returning for its fifth and final season without Dr. Helen Sharpe, after Freema Agyeman announced her departure back in July. Now, reports suggest that fans should possibly prepare to say goodbye to another doctor before the new episodes even begin to air. Have we already seen the last of Genevieve Angelson as Dr. Mia Castries?
Dr. Castries didn’t make the best first impression as a doctor, both because the others initially suspected that she was a spy for Dr. Fuentes (when Reynolds was ultimately the one who betrayed them) and because she practiced holistic medicine. They did come around to her, however, and she seemed like she had the potential to stay on board even after Michelle Forbes’ character left. TVLine now reports that there are no plans for Genevieve Angelson to reprise her recurring role in New Amsterdam Season 5.
The New Amsterdam producers haven’t commented on whether or not she’ll be back, and Genevieve Angelson herself hasn’t given any indication one way or the other on social media, so it’s not absolutely sure that she won’t be back. Still, it’s looking like Helen Sharpe won’t be the only character who disappears between the end of Season 4 and beginning of Season 5.
The apparent likelihood of Mia Castries being gone at the beginning of the final season makes me wonder all over again about a possible time jump. New Amsterdam usually skips ahead early in the season, depending on whether or not the premiere needs to wrap up a finale cliffhanger like with the fateful ambulance crash that cost Luna her mother.
It was the news of Freema Agyeman’s departure that really started me off on suspecting a time jump that could be bigger than usual. The actress’ statement when she announced that she wouldn’t be back didn’t indicate that she would be making cameo or guest appearances, and I’m not sure that I can see New Amsterdam spending many of its few remaining episodes with Max mourning the abrupt end to his relationship with Helen.
The fifth and final season will run for only 13 episodes, so there’s just not time for the whole heartbreak process that fans would expect after Max lost the woman who had been so close and so special to him for so long. It wasn’t that long ago that they were talking about expanding their little family unit, and Max was quite literally ready to be married when he got the news that Helen was still in London. A time jump could move Max forward without the grieving process for their relationship, and explain why Dr. Castries is suddenly absent.
Of course, I wouldn’t blame Dr. Castries if she decided to leave the hospital. The drama that happens at New Amsterdam is fun as a viewer, but a simple karaoke night with her coworkers turned into an icy near-death experience, not to mention all of the tension within the staff with Veronica Fuentes in charge. She made some headway with her coworkers by the end of the fourth season (which you can revisit streaming with a Peacock subscription), but could anybody really judge her if she decided to leave and find work at a less intense hospital?
Unfortunately, fans still have weeks to wait before finding out if Season 4 really was the end of Genevieve Angelson’s time on New Amsterdam. The medical drama returns for its shortened fifth and final season on Tuesday, September 20 at 10 p.m. ET on NBC. For more viewing options as the fall TV schedule picks up, be sure to check out our rundown of 2022 TV premiere dates.