‘The Resident’ EP Teases ‘Soapy Storylines’ Coming in Season 6
The Resident bosses are already looking ahead to the new season. On Tuesday, May 17, the medical drama’s emotional season 5 finale aired on FOX, teasing bright futures for everyone at Chastain Park Memorial Hospital. Following the episode, The Resident executive producer Andrew Chapman shared what’s to come in the newly-greenlit season 6 — mainly, “soapy storylines” focused on love and family.
[Spoiler alert: The following story contains spoilers for The Resident Season 5 Episode 23, “Neon Moon.”]
‘The Resident’ Season 5 finale brought a new chapter for Chastain’s doctors
Tuesday night’s finale brought back a friendly and familiar face: Nic Nevin (Emily VanCamp). As fans may recall, earlier in season 5, Nic died at the hospital following a car accident that left her with a devastating brain injury. Four years later, Conrad Hawkins (Matt Czuchry) still struggled to move on from Nic, despite the chance to explore new romances with Billie Sutton (Jessica Lucas) or Cade Sullivan (Kaley Ronayne).
In the finale, Conrad found himself constantly flashing back to his first date night with Nic after their daughter, Gigi, was born. After some fond memories of the evening, the doctor remembered a conversation with Nic where they discussed what would happen if one of them died. They both promised to move on with someone who would be kind to and care for Gigi. With that in mind, Conrad finally felt free enough to pursue another relationship — but fans won’t see who he chooses until next season.
Elsewhere, Chastain’s other doctors experienced their own life changes. After their breakup earlier this season, Devon Pravesh (Manish Dayal) and Leela Devi (Anuja Joshi) decided to give their relationship another try, putting aside their different opinions on having children. Meanwhile, Leela’s sister, Padma (Aneesha Joshi), learned she was pregnant with twins.
Cade’s father, Ian Sullivan (Andrew McCarthy), found himself as a patient at Chastain after a collapse in his hotel room. Conrad discovered Ian had prostate cancer. However, he made it through a dangerous surgery that could stop the cancer’s spread.
Finally, Randolph Bell (Bruce Greenwood) and Kit Voss (Jane Leeves) celebrated their engagement surrounded by friends. And after experiencing another multiple sclerosis flare-up, Bell decided that he’ll focus on mentoring Leela to become Chastain’s next greatest surgeon.
‘The Resident’ Season 6 will have ‘soapy storylines’ while still focusing on problems in healthcare
Just one day before the season 5 finale, FOX renewed The Resident for season 6. The show’s creators already have ideas for what’s to come. Speaking to Deadline, Chapman teased “a bunch of soapy storylines” for the new season.
“Conrad and his love life, Devon and Leela and their budding family, Kit and Bell’s wedding, Cade and her narcissistic father, and Billie and her longing for Conrad,” he said.
Chapman even went into a few specifics, revealing that KitBell’s wedding would happen at the beginning of the season. Bell will also apparently see the “ultimate redemption” in his career. Plus, Chapman teased AJ Austin’s (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) journey into fatherhood with Padma. The producer said it could help AJ cope with losing his mother.
On the other hand, Chapman assured that The Resident Season 6’s focus on love and family won’t take away from its core purpose: showcasing the modern and real problems in America’s healthcare system.
“We also want to dive into our classic unaccountable medical storylines: addiction in the ranks of doctors, corruption of medicine through money, doctors allowed to practice when they shouldn’t, street violence, and its catastrophic effect on hospitals. Have no fear, The Resident will continue to tackle the problems in American healthcare in every episode,” he added.
Will Emily VanCamp return again next season?
Unfortunately, according to Chapman, the plans for season 6 don’t include any more Emily VanCamp cameos. He said the writers wanted to bring “closure” to Conrad’s story with Nic so that he could move on. Plus, her appearance in the finale doubled as a way for VanCamp to give her castmates a proper goodbye.
“Because she had to drop out of the show so suddenly at the start of Season 5, she never really got a chance to say goodbye to the crew and cast in Atlanta. She wanted very much to do that,” Chapman explained. “When we reached out to her to be involved in the season finale she jumped at the chance. She was great.”
The Resident Season 5 is now available to stream on Hulu and FOX. Season 6 does not yet have a release date. Stay tuned to Showbiz Cheat Sheet for more updates.
