Although crime dramas remain one of the most successful genres, medical dramas are slowly but surely tapping into that fan base.
Yes, the worlds may be poles apart but there is a shared similarity born from the intriguing medical cases, conflicted scenarios and personal and professional challenges.
When it comes to medical dramas, there is no dearth of great offerings.
Each show from “The Good Doctor, “New Amsterdam”, “The Resident”, “Nurses” to “Grey’s Anatomy”, among others, has a unique hook. “Transplant” is no different.
The premise for Universal TV’s 13-part series is built around Dr Bashir "Bash" Hamed (Hamza Haq).
He is introduced as a migrant worker at an Indian restaurant.
A tragic accident, where he ends up saving the lives of several people, including Dr Jed Bishop (John Hannah), the head of ER at York Memorial Hospital in Toronto, gives him a second chance at a better life as well as the opportunity to work in the medical field as he did in war-torn Syria.
Dr Magalie “Mags” Leblanc (Laurence Leboeuf)) is one of the key characters built around him, who bring her own dynamic to the narrative.
In a telephone chat with Leboeuf, the 35-year-old French-Canadian actress admitted to being blown away by the scriptwriting and cast.
Interestingly, she was cast for this role on the back of working on “19-2”, a crime drama.
She shared: “I worked on ‘19-2’ prior to ‘Transplant’ and a couple of people on the same production thought I could deliver on the role. They sent me the script and I fell in love with it.”
When asked if her earlier role in “Trauma” helped her find her feet in this show, Leboeuf laughed: “‘Trauma’ was a while ago so I have to admit, I forgot a lot of it. Anything medical is always such new territory.”
She also pointed out that her current show is set in the emergency room, so it’s very different in terms of how the story is manipulated.
Leboeuf formed a close affinity with her character, too.
She admitted: “What I love about her is the way that she knows everything. To me, she is like the Hermione Granger of the ER. She’s by-the-book. She is very passionate and dedicated, to a fault. Her work is her whole life and the hospital is her boyfriend.
“At some point, she has to learn to create a healthy balance because it is getting to be too much for her and she is getting swallowed by this world.”
Interestingly, although Haq is a Canadian actor, this is the first time she is working with him. It’s also her first time sharing the screen with Hannah.
She shared: “I heard of him but I have never worked with him. We actually have a friend in common. Hamza is a terrific leader and an amazing actor and partner to have on-screen.
“John Hannah is just a legend. I was looking forward to and a bit apprehensive to meet him because he is a big name and he has this aura about him. But he’s down-to-earth, funny and an amazing actor.
“I am learning so much from him like less is more.”
The actress continued: “I do think with ‘Transplant’ we have a very unique point of view with the role of Bash, the lead character, coming from the point of view of being an immigrant.
“On top of that, I do feel that medical dramas are an endless well of good stories.”
“Transplant” gets to the heart of relatable issues synonymous with the genre while, at the same time, addressing the societal stain of racial and religious profiling.
“Transplant” is on Universal TV (DStv channel 117) on Monday at 8pm. It’s also available on DStv Catch Up.