'Good Doctor' Fans: Jasika Nicole (A.K.A. Carly) Won't Be Returning for Season 4

From Good Housekeeping

• Season 3 of The Good Doctor ended with episode 20 last Monday.

• Series creator David Shore revealed that actress Jasika Nicole would not be returning as Dr. Carly Lever in season 4.

• In February, ABC renewed The Good Doctor for a fourth season.

The Good Doctor season 3 finale was certainly one for the books.

The ending left fans distraught after seeing Dr. Neil Melendez (Nicholas Gonzalez) say goodbye to his family at St. Bonaventure Hospital before taking his last breath. But besides Melendez, there was a different Good Doctor character who quietly exited the show — Dr. Carly Lever, played by Jasika Nicole.

Moments after the emotional finale, series creator and executive producer David Shore revealed to TVLine that the actress was leaving The Good Doctor cast. But her absence might not be permanent.

"I would love to have her back here and there,” he told the outlet. “I love Jasika, and would love to see her on the show, but it will not be in the same capacity.”

The 39-year-old actress regularly appeared as the head pathologist throughout seasons 1 and 2 of the ABC medical drama. But it wasn’t until season 3 that viewers got to see more of Jasika when she became part of The Good Doctor main cast and played the girlfriend of Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore). When the two characters broke up after an eye-opening night of karaoke, fans began seeing less and less of her — and now, we know the reason why.

Although David didn’t share more details about the decision, we're sure the actress would also like to come back now and again. She previously told Good Housekeeping, "I am really excited and hope to see Carly interacting with other people in the cast outside of [Shaun] and learning more about her with other people."

From the look of things, Jasika is taking it all in stride. A day after her departure was announced, the Alabama native posted a video of herself with a caption paying tribute to Carly.

Here's to hopefully seeing more of Jasika soon!

You Might Also Like

• 40+ Gorgeous Kitchen Design Ideas You'll Want to Steal

• 7 Genius Ways to Kill Fruit Flies

• 37 Genius Double-Duty Organizing Ideas