The Good Doctor spoilers follow.
After The Good Doctor star Osvaldo Benavides exited the show, it has finally been revealed how his character is written out.
The Mexican actor was promoted to series regular at the start of season five, but it was confirmed he was abruptly leaving his role as surgical attending Dr Mateo Rendón Osma.
Details of how his character would be written out of the ABC show were kept on the down low, but this week's episode (November 1) revealed his fate.
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Benavides debuted as a guest star in the two-part finale for the fourth season, when Shaun and his surgical team met him at a rural hospital in Guatemala, and Dr Audrey Lim (Christina Chang) had an immediate connection with him.
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The beginning of this season saw Dr Mateo move from his home to California to commit to his romance with Lim.
But alas, in the fifth episode, titled 'Crazytown', Lim told Salen that Mateo had to go on an "urgent" medical mission in Guatemala. He told her it would just be a few days.
Upon his departure, he left Lim a bottle of wine and a note, which said: "Be back soon." But since then, he hadn't replied to any of her calls or texts.
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Shortly after he left, he sent his ex-girlfriend Rosa to St Bonaventure for treatment, where she was seen by Lim. Rosa told her she couldn't "picture Mateo here".
Rosa explained their relationship in detail, saying he "moves fast when he knows what he wants" and telling Lim they were "practically living together by our third date" but he would always get called away for some medical emergency.
Rosa said sometimes it would be days, sometimes weeks, and sometimes longer. "And then one time he didn't [come back]," she told Lim. "I waited for a long time. Too long." Rosa assured her Mateo said "he'll be back soon", but Lim already had her doubts.
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Despite Dr Andrews (Hill Harper) trying to have Rosa transferred to a different hospital for surgery, Lim insisted on doing it herself – for Mateo – despite Asher (Noah Galvin) insisting he wouldn't do the same for her.
At the end of the episode, Lim left Mateo a voicemail saying: "If you're coming back for work, I'll see you Thursday. If you're coming back for me, don't."
The Good Doctor season 5 airs on ABC in the US. The show airs on Sky Witness and NOW in the UK.
