Goodbye, The Good Doctor: season 7 marks the end of the ABC medical drama

Freddie Highmore in The Good Doctor
Freddie Highmore in The Good Doctor (Image credit: ABC/Jeff Weddell)

Fans of The Good Doctor have eagerly been awaiting the premiere of The Good Doctor season 7 since the show last aired in May 2023, but now they have an extra reason to tune in, as this upcoming season of The Good Doctor, premiering on February 20, is going to be the final run of episodes for the medical drama.

ABC announced the news on January 11 with a teaser trailer for what has been dubbed "the farewell season." The trailer shows many highlights from the series' run, its cast of characters and what appears to be the first footage of the new season.

You can watch The Good Doctor season 7 teaser right here:

The Good Doctor, created by David Shore, premiered in 2017, telling the story of Dr. Shaun Murphy, a young surgeon with autism and Savant syndrome, who becomes a member of the medical staff at a prestigious hospital. Over the seven seasons Shaun has earned the respect of his colleagues by solving complicated medical cases, but he's also grown as an individual to the point where he got married and, at the end of The Good Doctor season 6, became a father.

Freddie Highmore stars as Shaun Murphy, but the show is very much an ensemble piece, with fans getting to know and care for the other doctors Shaun works with. Among the regular cast for this final season of The Good Doctor are going to be Richard Schiff as Dr. Glassman, Fiona Gublemann as Dr. Reznick, Will Yun Lee as Dr. Park, Christina Chang as Dr. Lim, Paige Spara as Lea, Bria Henderson as Dr. Allen, Noah Galvin as Dr. Wolke and Chuku Modu as Dr. Kalu.

Because of the actors and writers' strikes that took place in Hollywood in 2023, The Good Doctor season 7 was booted from ABC's fall schedule, among other shows. ABC has not confirmed the number of episodes for The Good Doctor season 7, but because of this delay the final seasons could see a reduced number.

However many episodes there are going to be, they will be airing on a different night, as The Good Doctor has been moved from Monday, where it has aired since its first season, to Tuesdays at 10 pm ET/PT on ABC.

The Good Doctor is the second long-running ABC drama to announce that it is ending in 2024, as the Shonda Rhimes TV show Station 19 has also announced it will end with Station 19 season 7.

A number of other shows on other networks are also deciding to wrap things up this year, with CBS's Young Sheldon season 7, S.W.A.T. season 7 and SEAL Team season 7 marking the end of those series.

The Good Doctor season 7 premieres on Tuesday, February 20, at 10 pm ET/PT. If you want to catch up with what happened last season, check out our The Good Doctor season 6 recaps.

Michael Balderston

Michael Balderston is a DC-based entertainment and assistant managing editor for What to Watch, who has previously written about the TV and movies with TV Technology, Awards Circuit and regional publications. Spending most of his time watching new movies at the theater or classics on TCM, some of Michael's favorite movies include Casablanca, Moulin Rouge!, Silence of the Lambs, Children of Men, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest and Star Wars. On the TV side he enjoys Only Murders in the Building, Yellowstone, The Boys, Game of Thrones and is always up for a Seinfeld rerun. Follow on Letterboxd.