High Potential EP Unpacks ‘Traumatic’ Fall Finale, Hints at Future Storyline That Will ‘Rip Your Heart Out’
Morgan and Karadec just took their relationship to the next level on the fall finale of ABC’s High Potential. And by that, we mean they’re now… deskmates! Why, what did you think we meant?
Tuesday’s episode put the entire precinct through the wringer when a group of armed vigilantes made hostages out of several key staffers — along with Ava, who was visiting her mother at work for the day. A far cry from the show’s usual lighthearted tone, this harrowing hour pushed Morgan beyond her mental and emotional limits to solve one of the departments’ mishandled cases.
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Everyone eventually made it out of the building alive, though poor Tom (JD Pardo) ended up in the hospital after taking a bullet. Hey, that’s what you get for trying to play hero.
Below, showrunner Todd Harthan takes TVLine inside the eventful hour, explaining how the ordeal will affect Morgan and her family moving forward, and what we can expect when High Potential returns in 2025 for the second half of its freshman season:
TVLINE | This was a wild episode. Things have been relatively low stakes thus far, so I definitely didn’t see a full-blown hostage situation coming.
[Laughs] That was intentional. I wanted to advertise to the audience that they should be prepared to get a different flavor every week on this show. Some of them are going to be light and go down smoother, and some are going to keep you on the edge of your seat in a way you didn’t expect. And it’s true to life, every day is different. Some of them are funnier than others, some are more traumatic, some are absurd, and everything in between.
TVLINE | This episode checked off several of those boxes. There was one moment where Morgan and Ava were sobbing in each other’s faces, and I kind of marveled at what a good dramatic actress Kaitlin is. I tend to only think of her in the comedy realm.
Yes! And we can go to those places because, to your point, everybody knows Kaitlin as a comedic genius, but just look at some of the comedic geniuses out there that also turned out to be incredible dramatic actors. When we build stories for the show, I want to be able to hit all those different colors of the rainbow. Beyond that, when you look at this cast and all the tools they have in their belt, you go, “Whoa! I have no limitations.”
TVLINE | You mentioned the word “traumatic” earlier, and this episode certainly was that. Will it affect Morgan and Ava moving forward, or will it just be business as usual?
I think you’ll be surprised by how it affects them. Ava has always resented Morgan on some level because she has this gift that Ava doesn’t have, even though her little brother does. But now she’s witnessed life-and-death circumstances and she’s seen the value of her mother’s gift. What you get moving forward is this young woman seeing her mother through a slightly different lens.
TVLINE | When the kidnappers asked for the best detective, Melon volunteered himself, but everyone else knew it was Morgan. Do you see her remaining content simply working as a consultant, or would she ever want to become an official detective?
You know, that’s a good question. I haven’t thought about that, so I’m thinking about it now in real time. I’m just riffing here, as if we were in the writers’ room. I think Morgan is somebody that lives in the moment, and if she’s content, she’s not looking for the next thing. I think that consulting with this newfound family is good for her and her family. She’s not the person that goes, “How can this be a building block to my next thing?”
TVLINE | When Morgan was on the phone with Karadec and she spoke in code about Ava, he knew exactly what she was talking about. Is this a sign that they’re becoming better co-workers, or are they forging a deeper connection?
They are definitely forging a deeper connection. What I love about what we’re building with them is that you’re not going to see any romantic jealousy or a lot of those will-they-won’t-they tropes. I don’t love to do that. When they started out, there was no trust. He wanted nothing to do with her. Slowly but surely, there’s this mutual respect and bond and loyalty building between them. They’re almost becoming each other’s ride or die, people that are willing to be selfless for the other without any other separate agenda. That’s the bond I think is infectious. Down the road, who knows what will happen in a long-running series? Right now, I want the audience to fall in love with what my writers and I fell in love with — that these two people really care about each other and want to protect each other.
TVLINE | Well, Karadec’s got some stiff competition in Tom. I appreciated him getting a hero moment in this episode, taking a bullet for everyone.
[JD Pardo is] a lovely human being. I was in New York when we were casting him, and I was like, “Hey, do you want to come in? This is the character.” I don’t even think we had a script yet. I was just pitching him what the character was. It turns out he’s a massive Kaitlin Olson fan, and he was like, “I’ll do anything. You just tell me where and when.” He has this natural charm and he’s so comfortable in his own skin, both as a human being and as an actor. He folded right in. He was great.
TVLINE | I’m also extremely invested in the Roman of it all. How will the mystery of Morgan’s ex unfold when the show returns in 2025?
It’s big in the back half [of Season 1]. It’s big and it’s exciting. It really blooms in three of our back six [episodes]. What I did not want to do was drop these little bread crumbs [in the first half of the season] and not give the audience something more substantial in the back half as a promise to what could come in a future season. Obviously it impacts Morgan, but by extension, it also gets to Ava. There are some really wonderful things in that story that happen between mother and daughter that I think the audience is going to love. Some of it will be exciting and mysterious, and some of it will just rip your heart out.
How are you feeling after Tuesday’s High Potential fall finale? Grade the episode below, then drop a comment with your thoughts on the ABC crime procedural thus far, along with your hopes for 2025.
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