New Amsterdam saw its first dramatic death through the recurring guest character of Georgia Goodwin, Dr Max’s wife, who died during the season two premiere of the medical drama.
New Amsterdam is the New York City (NYC) based medical drama, which premiered on NBC in 2018.
Telling the story of the lives of public healthcare workers in the fictional hospital of New Amsterdam, the premise is based on the autobiographical novel by Dr Eric Manheimer, Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital and follows the life of the lead character, Dr Max Goodwin.
In real life, Dr Eric Manheimer is married to Diana Taylor, who is a professor of performance studies and Spanish at New York University.
In the world of the series, Dr Max Goodwin was married to Georgia Goodwin, who tragically passed away during the premiere of the second season.
Does New Amsterdam mirror Twelve Patients?
Dr Eric Manheimer wrote Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital in 2013, which was an autobiographical look at his 15-year tenure as the chief medical director at the oldest public hospital in NYC.
The series was then created by David Schulner, with Manheimer being enlisted as one of the producers of the series.
As a result, there are liberties that the series takes which do not follow the sequence of events as the books dictates. One such liberty is that of Goodwin’s wife, Georgia, and her storyline within the series.
What happened to Max’s wife, Georgia Goodwin on New Amsterdam?
New Amsterdam’s Georgia Goodwin was played by actress, Lisa O’Hare, and much-like Dr Max Goodwin’s likeness to Manheimer, Georgia was fashioned from Diana Taylor, Manheimer’s wife.
However, there are clear distinctions between Georgia Goodwin and Diana Taylor. Taylor is a professor of performance studies and Spanish at the New York University, and was born in Mexico.
Georgia Goodwin on the other hand is a blonde-haired American former dancer, who dies on the show during the second season premiere due to a brain bleed.
The brain bleed was caused by an accident the ambulance she was in sustained, as it crashed on the way to the hospital, after she suffered complications from her emergency C-section.
Why did New Amsterdam kill off Georgia Goodwin?
No reason has been given as to why the series took liberties with their narrative in terms of the life of Georgia Goodwin.
As a result, it has left room for speculation. One of the most corroborated speculations is that her death pushed the story forward.
Georgia’s character did not appear as much as other recurring main characters, therefore, her death impacted the story without changing the direction of the entire narrative.
Hence, the second season predominantly dealt with Dr Max processing his wife’s passing.
Did Georgia Goodwin’s death on New Amsterdam stop her appearance?
Though Georgia Goodwin died in the series, she still appeared in the world of the story. When Dr Max Goodwin was initially processing his wife’s death, the series would play out the memories they shared together.
However, as the series progressed, Dr Max continued to see Georgia as a ghost or presence. So, though Georgia Goodwin is dead, Lisa O’Hare has continued to reprise her role.
Why did Lisa O’Hare leave New Amsterdam?
Technically, Lisa O’Hare has not left the medical drama series, New Amsterdam. This is as she still makes cameo appearances in the world of the story, whether in memories or a presence in Dr Max Goodwin’s life.
Moreover, the actress managed to work on another production after stepping away from her character as Georgia Goodwin.
In 2020, O’Hare went onto play STR Laurie Gatekeeper on The Good. Currently, no word has been shared on if she is scheduled to work on another production, whether it be a film or returning to the silver screens.
Conclusion
New Amsterdam tells the adaptation of Dr Eric Manheimer’s 2013 autobiography, Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital.
The lead character, Dr Max Goodwin is also inspired by Manheimer and his tenure as the chief medical director of the oldest public hospital in NYC.
However, the David Schulner television series adaptation did take liberties with the storylines of other characters in the book, like Manheimer’s wife, Diana Taylor.
In the series, she is Georgia Goodwin, who dies during the second season premiere of the series, due to a brain bleed.
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