Just when Shaun and Lea finally decided to be together, COVID-19 came along. Shaun was adamant about being separated from Lea as he faced the pandemic head-on at the hospital. At the end of the Nov. 9 episode of The Good Doctor and after 3 negative COVID tests, Lea and Shaun finally reunited.
Now that they are able to finally be together, Shaun and Lea will be in uncharted territory together as they navigate their romantic relationship in season 4. HollywoodLife talked EXCLUSIVELY with Paige Spara about how Shaun and Lea will be “figuring out” their relationship. This means we’ll be seeing more of Lea’s “point of view” and how both Shaun and Lea will be facing the hurdles coming their way as they both strive to feel “loved and honored in a real committed relationship.”
Shaun and Lea were separated for a period of time because of the pandemic, but they reunited at the end of tonight’s episode. Where does their relationship go from here? I feel like their relationship had just started when the pandemic hit.
Paige Spara: I had so many people in my real life where the same kind of pattern had happened. They’re finally at that point in their lives, they have found someone, and then the pandemic hit. It’s just like, okay, how do you move forward while this is going on? We do reconnect, obviously. Moving forward, I think we’re really going to explore the complexities of an actual committed relationship for the both of them. We will see Shaun’s point of view and also explore way more of Lea’s point of view. We’ll see how they work together in figuring out what that could look like for both of them where they both feel safe and loved and honored in a real committed relationship.
I feel like they were exploring that already while quarantining separately, especially with the video chat. They want to be intimate, but there are just limitations to that when you’re not physically together.
Paige Spara: There’s that pressure because you don’t want to drop the ball after you finally made a decision to go all-in. It’s like, how do you keep that intimacy and that connection going through FaceTime? What does that look like when you can’t hold someone while going through something they’ve never had to go through in their lifetime? That was really, really interesting to explore with both of them for sure.
Given that they’ve reunited, could Lea end up moving back into the apartment? How are they going to be able to be together while Shaun is still working at the hospital and the pandemic is still a part of their lives?
Paige Spara: We are going to definitely address that conversation because the line was a bit blurred. They are coming from being best friends, the number one confidants in each other’s lives, who also happened to be roommates previously. That line is hugely blurred. It’s kind of assumed, oh, we’ve done it before. This just kind of makes sense, but I think there are definitely conversations that take place where they’re like, wait a minute. This is different. We have to honor the fact that we are in a different dynamic right now, and we are both showing up wanting the same thing. This is actually going to be another huge commitment, living together as partners. We’re not just roommates, so what does that look like? Because that is completely different. I think they’re definitely going to explore those conversations for sure. In regards to it being a COVID world, after the first two episodes, we’re definitely going to be addressing COVID but kind of not directly. It’ll be more indirectly to kind of give this escapism as entertainers to see what normal can kind of look like and provide escape and some hope.
Aside from the pandemic which obviously brought challenges their way, what can you tease about the other challenges Shaun and Lea will face going forward?
Paige Spara: I think what we’re going to really explore is Lea’s point of view because she and Shaun have dated. I think a lot of us can relate to this, once you date for a while you start really having a more clear understanding of what exactly you need from your partner and what you actually want. It’s about addressing those individual needs and wants with one another on a whole other level. There’s not so much room for just expecting that, so they’re really going to have to understand what it’s like to take on patience and compassion for someone in a partnership if they’re really going to make it work. That’s going to deal with a lot of Lea’s history and who she is as an individual. Especially Shaun because he’s now kind of stepping into more of a supervisor role in the hospital, so he has a whole new set of other pressures and kind of intimate, emotional challenges just in that supervisor-y circumstance. That comes with that anyway, so it’s going to be really cool because I feel like she’s also going to be integrated much more in the conversations that are happening at work, especially with the new residents. They’re just building more of the understanding that they already innately have with one another. They’re leaning into that more and the strength that they provide for one another. I’m really happy with it so far.
With you mentioning Lea’s point of view and looking at her history, does that mean we’re going to get more of her backstory?
Paige Spara: I think so. It’s more so indirectly. It’ll be little by little when she’s confronted with something that she thought maybe she would have an understanding of or she would not necessarily feel like she would be hurt by. But then again, when you’re in a committed relationship with someone, there are nuances that come with that that you don’t necessarily get from other people, but you can get triggered by the person. We’re going to be exploring that. From that, we’re going to understand why those triggers affect her in a way, and these new triggers will be explored because of her past and as her own person.