TVLINE | That final conversation between Robby and Samira — where he says he thought he’d be married with two kids in college by now, and then sort of shrugs it off — is there truth in what he tells her, or is that just another version of the life he feels he missed?
I think it’s a little bit of both. Some of that is what he had hoped for at one time — to have a family, children. He was so focused on his work and medicine. He had relationships, but some didn’t work out. Suddenly he’s 53, and he’s taking a look around and seeing what he has besides the medicine. I think there is some disappointment with Robby, and part of his condition plays into that. The only place he feels comfortable is in the hospital, but that’s all he has. To be a fully rounded individual, he has to find a place for something beyond just the medicine — a relationship, a life outside of it.
TVLINE | In the final scene with Baby Jane Doe, when Robby says, “You’ve got so many wonderful things ahead of you… people who won’t abandon you,” how much of that is him talking to himself?
A lot. Noah and I talked about this — the baby is, in some ways, the one person he can talk to, where he feels comfortable, because he knows whatever he says is never going to go anywhere else. He’s not the greatest at sharing his emotions when they’re really personal. He’s very good at helping patients, but he’s probably the worst patient himself.
TVLINE | Fans will ask, so I’ll ask: There’s no world in which Robby is fostering Baby Jane Doe in Season 3, right?
No. We joked about it — cutting to him on his motorcycle with the baby in a Baby Bjorn — but no. Whether we follow up with Baby Jane Doe remains to be seen, but he’s got his hands full with his spirit quest.
TVLINE | Does that moment represent a genuine turning point for him, in terms of staying rather than going on this “spirit quest”?
No, he ends up going. In those final moments with the baby, Robby finally puts her down and decides to go. Part of it is he feels he has to go now because he’s talked about it for so long. One of the things we play in Season 3 is that he comes back, but he doesn’t come back to the hospital right away.
TVLINE | So does that mean Noah’s not in the first—
He will show up [in Episode 1], but he’s been away from work longer than three months.
TVLINE | Which is why we’re picking up four months later, got it. If Season 1 was about him hitting a breaking point, and Season 2 was about avoidance, what defines his journey in Season 3?
Definitely putting in the work, doing the work, and trying to heal — and needing the work that he hasn’t put in himself.