Kaitlin Olson‘s new ABC drama is primarily inspired by the French seriesHigh Intellectual Potential or HPI. High Potential borrows heavily from the original, with cases and several highly similar characters. However, showrunner Todd Harthan revealed to TV Line that there were some changes the production team made, and they all had to do with the lead character. American Morgan is “a little more grounded” than French Morgane. “[Morgane] has a sort of flippant quality to her, bordering on being slightly too much for my taste,” Harthan said. He revealed that making Morgan respectful was a conscious choice for sensitivity purposes, saying,
“We still have the quirk and personality of the character because she is big and bold and brash, but we don’t ever want to skew so broad that we’re not being mindful of the cases we’re tackling and the people that have lost a loved one.”
This unique personality is seen right from the start when she walks on desks in the precinct while cleaning. She would never have knocked down the files on the desk and figured out something was wrong if it were not for that. Olson balances that by nailing the emotional scenes where her vulnerability comes across, especially concerning Morgan’s children. Some characters, like Detective Karadec, get a more quirky Morgan, but that might change in the upcoming episodes.
Is There a ‘High Potential’ for Morgan-Karadec Romance?
It’s never surprising when a female and male lead are paired together romantically. In fact, it is to be expected. “I am notorious for playing these things slowly,” Harthan said about whether Morgan and Karadec’s future includes romance. He has been an executive producer on shows like The Resident and The Company You Keep. He talked about the potential romance arc between the two, saying,
“[There’ll be a] growing respect and friendship between them, and that’s what you’ll fall in love with [as a viewer] before the characters ever fall in love with each other. Of course, we’re going to have those moments, those looks, and fan those flames. But to me, it’s got to be a slow burn. We’ve got to do it right and earn it.”
High Potential stars Olson, Daniel Sunjata as Karadec, Javicia Leslie as Daphne, Deniz Akdeniz as Lev “Oz” Osman, Amirah J as Ava, Matthew Lamb as Elliot, and Judy Reyes as Selena.
Will they or won’t they? Find out in all-new episodes on Tuesdays on ABC. You can also stream past episodes on Hulu.
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