Joshua Jackson‘s hit ABC series Doctor Odyssey is raising the stakes thanks to a shark attack — or two — in the midseason premiere.
In Us Weekly‘s exclusive preview of the second half of season 1, Max (Jackson), Avery (Phillipa Soo), Tristan (Sean Teale) and Captain Massey (Don Johnson) are back at it in the high seas.
“This life on the high seas practicing medicine is,” Max says in the clip before Avery interrupts to say “Addictive?” Max, however, has another word on his mind: “Exhilarating.”
Elsewhere in the sneak peek, First Officer Spencer Monroe is seen floating out at sea before he is attacked by a shark. His injury is one of many incidents that take place on The Odyssey — including an attack that puts the entire cruise ship at risk.
“A great white has taken out our electrical systems,” Captain Massey tells Avery as they are about to prepare for a surgery before the lights go out. “We are dead in the water.”
The medical drama, which debuted in September 2024, introduced viewers to Jackson’s character on his journey to becoming the new onboard doctor of the Odyssey. Doctor Odyssey hasn’t been afraid to push boundaries with themed weeks that range from Singles Week to Plastic Surgery Week to Quackers week.
When Doctor Odyssey returns on March 6, fans are in for a treat with a two-part shark-inspired special, which is then followed up with a Casino Week episode that features the first crossover with Ryan Murphy’s 9-1-1.
“Ryan’s imagination is prolific and bizarre in its ability to hold [space] for the absolutely grotesque and absurd — and then there are his lighter and happier shows. All of that being inside of one man’s imagination is amazing,” Jackson, 46, exclusively told Us ahead of the midseason return. “I will say that for myself, I have wanted to work for Ryan for quite a long time.”
Television pioneer Ryan Murphy has been creating, writing, directing and producing Emmy-winning series for over two decades — and now has so many shows on the air that it feels like he’s everywhere. After cocreating the cult teen dramedy Popular in 1999, Murphy made his debut as a solo creator with the FX drama Nip/Tuck, […]
Jackson recalled being a fan of Murphy’s work long before joining the cast of Doctor Odyssey.
“One of the things that I love about his shows is the dialogue and how he keeps things moving. The dialogue is always at a pace where it always crackles. It doesn’t get dragged down,” he noted. “This show in particular is on the lighter side of his imagination. So we very much — by intention, throughout this entire season despite the hours being long and my brain definitely going to mush a couple of times — make sure that we keep on reminding each other to have fun with it.”
While reflecting on the stories that are yet to come, Jackson added, “Ryan’s word was sparkle. He said, ‘Make sure that my show sparkles.’ And we have tried to make sure that this show sparkles as much as possible and just hope that the joy that we feel in performing it and doing it all together is what comes across while you’re watching it.”
Doctor Odyssey returns to ABC Thursday, March 6, at 9 p.m. ET.