Doctor Odyssey's Season 1 finale trailer may have teased a potential grim fate for one of its core characters. Doctor Odyssey revolves around the personal and professional lives of the medical team of a luxurious cruise ship: nurses Avery (Phillipa Soo) and Tristan (Sean Teale), and newly-hired chief medical officer Max Bankman (Joshua Jackson).
Doctor Odyssey's penultimate episode, "The Wave," saw the crew dealing with a massive earthquake that led to a deadly tsunami. Max was left behind on land after accompanying some passengers on a hiking tour while his friends and team at The Odyssey were left to deal with the tsunami at sea.
After the tsunami caused chaos, Season 1, Episode 17 ended with Max stuck in an abandoned church when an aftershock occurred, causing his radio to go silent. This came after Captain Massey (Don Johnson) decided to risk the danger of going back to port to search for Max and the other survivors.
ABC officially released a new trailer for Doctor Odyssey Episode 18 (the Season finale), which showed more of the tsunami's aftermath and revealed a glimpse of what's next for Max.
In the 30-second trailer, Captain Massey's decision to go back to port came back to bite him after he was relieved from his duty. Despite that, Avery decided to take matters into her own hands by leading her own rescue mission to find Max.
At the 0:13-second mark of the trailer, a brief glimpse of Max and his new coroner friend Barry (guest star Jim O'Heir) was shown as the pair struggles to keep their balance amid another aftershock.
While the trailer confirmed that Max is still alive after his radio went silent, he and Barry are still not out of harm's way, mainly because the preview ended with a panicking Avery rushing to the church and yelling Max's name as if he were buried in the rubble.
Given that Doctor Odyssey has yet to be renewed by ABC for Season 2 (largely due to its expensive production), Max's potential death could send shockwaves to the rest of The Odyssey if the upcoming episode becomes the series finale.
Although Max's major goodbye looms in Doctor Odyssey's season finale, his exit could still lead to several storylines with the series shifting the spotlight to its other two core protagonists: Avery and Tristan.
Alongside the trailer, ABC also released an official synopsis for Doctor Odyssey Episode 18:
"When Max’s transmission goes silent, he and Barry seek refuge in an abandoned church while Tristan takes charge of The Odyssey. With time running out, Avery leads a high-stakes rescue mission to find Max."
Fans can watch the trailer below:
Created by Ryan Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz, and Joe Baken, Doctor Odyssey is anchored by the strong performances of its four main cast members, Joshua Jackson, Phillipa Soo, Sean Teale, and Don Johnson.
The series also boasts a wide array of guest stars every week, including Shania Twain, Kathryn Newton, and even a 9-1-1 crossover with Angela Bassett's Athena Grant in Doctor Odyssey Episode 11.
Will Max Die in Doctor Odyssey's Season 1 Finale?
Joshua Jackson's Max Bankman has been the lifeblood of Doctor Odyssey, and losing him quickly in Season 1 could be a mistake if the show gets renewed for Season 2.
A report from Deadline in March 2025 revealed that Doctor Odyssey's Season 1 finale was written as a potential series finale, meaning that a significant death is on the table as Max's fate hangs in the balance.
If it doesn't get renewed, ending Doctor Odyssey with Max's death as he tries to save a man he barely knew seems a proper and heroic send-off for the character, but it is still devastating on all fronts. It is also quite fitting that Avery would be there in Max's final moments (if he will really die), especially after Max confessed that he loves her.
Max's death would also cement that no one is safe in The Odyssey, raising the stakes for every episode if it returns in Season 2.
Whatever the case, it is good that the Season 1 finale was written as the series ender since it means that a satisfying ending will be in the cards, whether Max dies or not.
