Anyone following our coverage of The Pitt probably already knows this, but Dr. Mel King (Taylor Dearden) has consistently been at the top of our list of favorites all season. And in The Pitt Season 1 Episode 8, Mel rose to the occasion, yet again, by showing extra kindness to a little girl whose sister drowned saving her. That’s not to say it was easy — it’s clear throughout those scenes that Mel is having a difficult time with a case that hits so close to home — but it’s specifically because she does manage to be so caring, even when it’s the most difficult, that we continue to love the character. So, with Amber, Bella, and a teddy bear (named “Bear,” of course) fresh on our minds, we began our interview with Dearden by asking her how Dr. King managed to hold it all together in such a heartbreaking situation.
“I think it was definitely hard for Mel,” Dearden said, “but Mel’s seen a lot of loss too,” so she understands the importance of giving Bella that last positive memory. “She has to be like, ‘memories are good…you’ve got to keep living your life, and this is going to be really rough, so I want to handle this well.'” So, a lot of her strength in that situation also comes from “Mel knowing that she can’t break down.” And “knowing you have to handle it well is…it keeps you on your toes when it’s tough.”
On that scene in The Pitt Season 1 Episode 9 & the uncharacteristic kindness from Dr. Langdon
So, now what? How does this affect the rest of Mel’s day, if at all? Well, things slow down at least a little bit in The Pitt Season 1 Episode 9. Written by Noah Wyle, Dearden described the hour as “such a good pause episode of…everyone just take a breath, [and] go back to work doing everything else.” That little bit of a pause “helped all of the characters move to the next, and next, and next hour” because it gave them the opportunity “to have an hour where we just all kind of take care of ourselves and…take it easy a little bit.”
Relatedly, when Mel gets her chance to slow down The Pitt Season 1 Episode 9, it’s because Dr. Langdon tells her to go take 20. And, even though the other doctor’s just had a rather explosive several minutes, when he goes to check on Mel, the two have a really beautiful, quiet sort of moment together. It kind of seems unlikely that someone like Langdon would truly see King, and yet…he just does, both in Episode 9 and, previously, in The Pitt Season 1 Episode 7. So, we asked Dearden what she thinks it is about Mel that brings out that kinder side of the senior resident.
“I think part of it is that Mel has…very little to no ego, and it’s probably refreshing when you get a bunch of people who come in like a Santos — or most other people — like really ready. Ready to take it all on,” who come in very convinced that they already “know the right answer.” But Mel’s not like that. “Because Mel is so eager to learn…it definitely eases [Dr. Langdon], I think…He likes being a teacher, and I don’t think he gets to do it enough.” Most of the time, his attempts at teaching get met with more of a “‘yeah, whatever,'” So, for Mel to be that “one person” who listens to “every word… it helps.”
(Here, as Dearden mentions Dr. King listening to everything Dr. Langdon says, she also acts out very eagerly listening and taking notes.)
There’s also a value in two characters who are “complete opposites” working together. Additionally, “there’s nuances to everyone.” And, as far as the professional respect between those two very different characters, “sometimes, the things you think would help make you a better doctor” actually don’t. Or, “being quick and efficient sometimes doesn’t mean that you get…the right outcome.”
Taylor Dearden on Mel’s neurodivergence
In fact, if we again refer back to Episode 7, Dr. King gets the best outcome for Terrance just by knowing how important it is to cut out all the excessive noise and lights to keep him more comfortable. At the time, she says she knew what to do because her sister’s on the spectrum, but we’ve seen throughout this season that Mel has some neurodivergent traits herself. So, we can’t help but wonder if we’ll learn more about her.
“It’s not a spoken thing,” Dearden told us, “and I talked to the writers originally because it was very clear to me in the script.” She also referred to her own ADHD, pointing out that “we’re on the same spectrum now as autism…which made so much sense when they figured that one out.” And so, “I think it was easier for me to just play some of my own symptoms unmasked, to just kind of be like, ‘all right, if I wasn’t trying so hard to hide this, what would it — what would it look like?'”
Of course, “anxiety makes everything worse…every symptom of anything…will be worse with major anxiety.” Since this is Mel’s first day at a new job, it probably goes without saying that the anxiety is there. And it’s even more than your “typical” first day. Not only is this quite a high-stakes job all on its own, but “Mel so wants this to work because [her sister] Becca’s so close in a great facility. Everything looks like it’s finally getting a shape to it for Mel and her life that it’s like, ‘I can’t lose this,’ you know?”
For those viewers wondering why Dr. King is so open about Becca’s diagnosis but never really talks about her own needs, Dearden provided a lot of insight. “It’s incredibly common for — for people on the spectrum to…if they have a sibling [who] needs more help, [also] on the spectrum…for no one to notice that the other sibling has it, too.” But that’s yet another reason why representation is so important. “Which, again, is also the frustrating thing about, in media, never seeing the whole spectrum.” It’s like TV and movies are pointing to one particular type of neurodivergence and saying, “so it’s this or nothing. As opposed to…Well, again, even the word ‘spectrum’ [indicates that] there’s a lot here.”
A tease for future The Pitt Season 1 episodes
To wrap up the interview, we asked the obvious question: With the drama on this shift obviously building toward something, what’s next? Without going into detail about exactly what happens, Dearden shared that we should look out for a pregnant patient played by Enuka Okuma in Episode 11. Calling those scenes “possibly the most difficult,” she told us that “being in that room was some of the toughest we’ve had to do.” That was especially true because “my friend Brandon [Mendez Homer], who plays Donnie Donahue, the nurse…his partner was pregnant at the time, and we’re just watching this [fictional] pregnancy go horribly wrong.” She remembered “just seeing his face kind of get ashen at times.”
But that’s not all: “I could not imagine being…about to be a parent [and] having to do what he had to do. Just awful…But he did a great job through it. And I mean, I would not have handled it as well as he did.”
Uh, same for us, actually.
Don’t miss Taylor Dearden as Dr. Mel King in The Pitt. New episodes stream Thursdays at 9/8c on Max.
