High Potential

''High Potential'' is an American crime drama television series created by Drew Goddard for ABC. It is based on the 2021 French and Belgian television series '' HPI''. The series stars Kaitlin Olson as Morgan Gillory, an intellectually gifted cleaning woman who becomes a police consultant. Also starring are Daniel Sunjata as Morgan's partner Adam Karadec and Judy Reyes as Selena Soto, the head of their department. The series premiered on September 17, 2024. In January 2025, the series was renewed for a second season.

Premise

The show centers on Morgan Gillory, a single mother with three children who works as a cleaning lady for the Los Angeles Police Department. She is also a high potential intellectual ("HPI"), with an IQ of 160. After solving a case using her unconventional mind, she becomes a consultant for the LAPD's Major Crimes division, where she is paired with no-nonsense detective Adam Karadec.

A subplot involves Morgan using the LAPD's help and resources to find out what happened to her first husband, Roman, the father of her older daughter Ava, who disappeared 15 years earlier when Ava was a baby.

Cast and characters

Main

* Kaitlin Olson as Morgan Gillory, a single mother with three children, an IQ of 160, and a wide range of knowledge. Morgan works as a cleaning lady for the LAPD until Selena offers her a consultant position
* Daniel Sunjata as Adam Karadec, a detective who is initially skeptical about Morgan being an asset to the LAPD but later becomes her dedicated partner
* Javicia Leslie as Daphne Forrester, Major Crimes investigator and Oz's partner
* Deniz Akdeniz as Lev "Oz" Özdil, Major Crimes investigator and Daphne's partner
* Amirah J as Ava Gillory, Morgan's rebellious teenage daughter whose father, Roman, disappeared 15 years before the series begins
* Matthew Lamb as Elliot Radovic, Morgan's son with her second ex-husband Ludo. He seems to have inherited his mom's high-potential intellect
* Judy Reyes as Selena Soto, head of the LAPD's Major Crimes Division, where Morgan serves as a consultant

Recurring

* Taran Killam as Ludo Radovic, Morgan's second ex-husband, Ava's ex-stepfather and Elliot and Chloe's father who is a driving instructor. Despite their divorce, he and Morgan are on friendly terms, and he takes care of all three of her children as a "manny" salaried by the LAPD.
* Garret Dillahunt as Lieutenant Melon, the head of the LAPD's Robbery-Homicide Division
* JD Pardo as Tom, a janitor at LAPD who is in nursing school and whom Morgan briefly dates

Episodes

Production

Development

On September 20, 2022, ''High Potential'' was given a pilot order by ABC. The pilot was written by Drew Goddard. On May 16, 2023, ''High Potential'' was picked to series by ABC. The series was created by Goddard who was expected to executive produce alongside Sarah Esberg, Rob Thomas, Dan Etheridge, Pierre Laugier, Anthony Lancret, Jean Nainchrik, and Alethea Jones. Jones also directed the pilot. Thomas also was expected to serve as the showrunner. Kaitlin Olson was expected to serve as producer. Production companies involved with the series are Goddard Textiles, Spondoolie Productions, Itinéraire Productions, Septembre Productions, and ABC Signature. On June 5, 2024, Thomas exited as the showrunner for the series. On June 21, 2024, Todd Harthan was announced as the new showrunner who would also serve as an executive producer, replacing Thomas. ''High Potential'' is the last series from ABC Signature before the division was folded into 20th Television on October 1, 2024.

On January 21, 2025, ABC renewed the series for a second season.

Casting

Upon the series pickup announcement, Olson, Daniel Sunjata, Javicia Leslie, Deniz Akdeniz, Amirah J, Matthew Lamb, and Judy Reyes were cast in starring roles. On July 1, 2024, Garret Dillahunt joined cast in a recurring capacity. On August 21, 2024, Taran Killam was cast in a recurring role.

Release

''High Potential'' premiered on September 17, 2024 on ABC. The series was later made available to stream on Hulu. Due to the show's initial atypical production schedule and Kaitlin Olson's commitment to her other television role on FX's ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', ABC only ordered 13 episodes for the first season instead of a longer 20-episode season.

Reception

Critical response

The series holds a 96% approval rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 24 critic reviews with an average rating of 7.2/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "With the ineffable Kaitlin Olson on hand to inject some spiky personality into a familiar formula, ''High Potential'' is a solid procedural with plenty of upside." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 72 out of 100 based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.

Aramide Tinubu of ''Variety'' asserted that ''High Potential'' is a solid police procedural, praised Kaitlin Olson's performance, noting her ability to bring quirky charm to the role. Tinubu found the show's premise to be engaging, with Morgan's genius-level IQ and eccentricities offering a unique spin on the crime genre. Tinubu stated that while ''High Potential'' does not break new ground in the genre, it remains a perfectly adequate and formulaic watch. Tinubu appreciated the supporting cast, especially the chemistry between Olson and her co-stars, and highlighted the intriguing dynamic between Morgan and Detective Karadec.

Daniel Fienberg of ''The Hollywood Reporter'' said that ''High Potential'' is a show with a promising star but a shaky premise, praising Olson for her strong performance as Morgan. Fienberg found the exposition in the pilot, particularly Morgan's unsolicited revelation of her IQ, to be off-putting and distracting, noting it undermines the character's likability. He stated that the show struggles with its central premise, particularly around the question of how much Morgan's "high potential" actually contributes to solving cases, which leaves other characters feeling superfluous. Fienberg appreciated Olson's ability to ground the show and make the absurd moments enjoyable, but noted that the series as a whole is still finding its balance, with the chemistry between Olson and her co-stars, especially Daniel Sunjata, still developing. He concluded that while Olson represents the series' "high potential," the rest of the show needs to catch up.

Ratings

The premiere of ''High Potential'' saw a 220% increase in viewership, reaching 11.5 million viewers across platforms (including Hulu and Hulu on Disney+) within three days, from an initial 3.6 million on ABC alone. In the key 18-49 demographic, the rating rose by 354% (from 0.35 to 1.59) after 3 days of additional viewing across multiple streaming platforms. On Hulu, the series ranked in the Top 15 and held the No. 1 spot for three consecutive days starting September 22.

''High Potential'' later became the most-watched new series on ABC in six years, surpassing ''The Conners''' record from the 2018-2019 season. The October 22 episode was watched by 6.83 million viewers in Live + 7 Days metric, marking ABC's top spot in the Tuesday night scripted lineup for the first time in four years. After including streaming data from Hulu and Disney+, the episode's viewership rose to 10.49 million viewers - a 191% increase from its Live + Same Day ratings of 3.6 million, with steady viewership retention since the pilot.

Nielsen Media Research, which records streaming viewership on U.S. television screens, revealed that ''High Potential'' ranked as the No. 12 show of the fall among adults 18–49 in Nielsen live+7 ratings, with a 0.57 rating. Including seven days of streaming, the show rose to No. 1 in the demographic with a 2.33 rating, reflecting a 309% increase driven by its performance on Hulu. It also became the most-streamed broadcast entertainment series of the fall, with 4.3 million streaming viewers, which boosted its total viewership from 6.5 million in live+7 to 10.8 million across platforms, making it the third most-watched show in total viewers.

The January 14, 2025, episode of ''High Potential'' set a series high with 13.19 million cross-platform viewers over seven days and a 2.44 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic (about 3.27 million viewers). The episode also drew 9.14 million viewers in Nielsen's seven-day linear ratings. Streaming accounted for about 31% of the audience, with 4.05 million viewers, particularly skewing younger, with more than two-thirds of the 18-49 viewers (about 2.22 million people) watching via streaming. This performance marked the largest audience for an ABC drama in over four years, since ''Grey's Anatomy'' episodes in fall 2020.

Accolades

''High Potential'' was nominated for Best Action/Thriller Television Series at the 52nd Saturn Awards.

Notes

References

External links

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{{ABCNetwork Shows (current and upcoming)

2024 American television series debuts
American English-language television shows
American Broadcasting Company crime dramas
American television series based on French television series
Television series by ABC Studios
Television series by 20th Television
Television shows set in Los Angeles
Television series about the Los Angeles Police Department