‘The Good Doctor’ Ups Jasika Nicole to Series Regular for Season 3

Jasika Nicole as Carly in The Good Doctor
ABC/David Bukach

The Good Doctor is going to have plenty of time to explore Shaun’s (Freddie Highmore) love life in Season 3 with the newest promotion.

Jasika Nicole, who plays Dr. Carly Lever, will be a series regular when the ABC medical drama returns in the fall, according to TVLine. She recurred in the first two seasons as the pathologist.

The Season 2 finale ended with Shaun bringing flowers and chocolates to Carly’s house and sweetly asking her out on a date. “I would love to,” she told him. Both were smiling as he left (with the flowers and chocolates still in his hands).

That moment was “huge” and “significant” for Shaun, showrunner David Shore told Entertainment Weekly. “I think next season, that’s going to be a lot of what we’re looking at — his social life and him growing as a man who wants to be loved. … I want to take it slow and I want to fully explore all the aspects of that and all those landmarks along the way. Then, there’s the successes and the failures.”

And with Nicole a series regular, there should be time to see just that with whatever comes next for Shaun and Carly.

Another casting change coming for Season 3 is a new status for Tamlyn Tomita, who was a series regular for the first two seasons but will recur as Allegra Aoki going forward.

The Good Doctor, Season 3 Premiere, Monday, September 23, 10/9c, ABC