


If Doctor Odyssey is really a sinking ship, at least they can boast about all of the incredible stars who helped to bring the show to life week after week. And boy, there were many.
In just 18 episodes, The Odyssey managed to welcome a couple dozen actors and actresses ranging from teens to the elderly, each one bringing a unique flare to roles with a certain je ne sais quoi — okay, actually, we’ll say it: the roles were crazy and these actors got to be absurd.
Some characters and storylines were crazier than others (see No. 6 on the list who had a lit storyline with their wig) but overall, the show did a damn good job of bringing people into the fold and making it as fun to watch as it hopefully was to shoot.
And while we’re already dreaming about who a Doctor Odyssey Season 2 should welcome, we should start by at least recognizing the incredible work of Season 1.
Here are our top 10 favorite guest stars from Doctor Odyssey‘s first (but hopefully not last) season.
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Photo: ABC/Disney Listen, I know people referred to them as the “nepo baby trio” but I’m just happy that the Doctor Odyssey casting director had a vision and went with it. Seeing Ava Phillippe make a nod to her mom, Reese Witherspoon, in Legally Blonde with her pink swimsuit and chunky necklace was actually incredibly sweet. On the flip side, watching Paris Jackson — daughter of Michael Jackson — nearly die after taking laced drugs, was not.
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Kelsea Ballerini in ‘Doctor Odyssey’ Episode 6 Disney Kelsea Ballerini as a bride on Ozempic who ends up not walking down the aisle because her fiance commits suicide is a wild sentence to write. Somehow, it was an even wilder storyline to watch play out in Episode 6, “I Always Cry At Weddings.” For this being one of her first acting roles, I was thoroughly impressed by the depth and range the country singer brought to her role, including having to fake a pancreatitis episode from her GLP-1 use and playing devastated after finding out her soon-to-be hubby killed himself. What an episode, man.
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Disney I could watch Kate Berlant read the ingredients off a cereal box so imagine my surprise and delight as she plays a wellness guru (*quack*) who is selling “Diva Dust” smoothies that promise to help cure dyslexia and hiccups among other ailments. Unsuprisingly, those smoothies actually cause kidney failure. Additionally, we also got to see her puncture her partner’s lung while trying to do acupuncture so this week was not all’s well that ends well.
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Photo: ABC/Disney Another trio, sorry to cop out. Boarding the ship as Craig Massey, the brother of Captain Robert (Don Johnson), John Stamos shocks his sibling by bringing not one but two of his partners, played by Cheyenne Jackson and Johnny Sibilly. It wasn’t the first threesome we had seen on screen — the prior episode saw the steamy moment between The Odyssey’s medical team — but this was more about introducing people to an alternative kind of lifestyle and there was something sweet about it that I appreciated. Plus, three killer actors playing gay men on a cruise specifically for the LGBTQ+ community? Great television all around.
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Bob the Drag Queen in ‘Doctor Odyssey’ Disney From spitting fire in The Traitors Season 3 to catching fire in Doctor Odyssey, Bob the Drag Queen’s guest starring role in the ladder gave me everything I never knew I needed. His short-lived performance of Chappell Roan’s “Hot To Go” ends, of course, with his wig catching on fire and having to go to the infirmary for severe burns, making for one of the best scenes of the entire first season.
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Photo: ABC/Disney In Episode 17, we are first introduced to Annie Mumolo’s character as she ignores the warning sirens of an impending tsunami so she can catch some rays. Furthermore, as Tristan (Sean Teale) warns her of the danger, she throws a hissy fit over welcoming “immigrants” on the ship only to later have one of the sanctuary seekers help to deliver her baby. Oh, and I didn’t even mention she didn’t know she was pregnant. Mumolo was the perfect choice to sell the “rich b*tch” role and double points for getting her back in resort wear. BRB, going to watch Barb & Star Go To Vista Del Mar.
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Photo: ABC Jim O’Heir of Parks and Recreation fame playing a yappy coroner who helps to save the day in the final episodes of Season 1? Oh, and his name is a wink-and-nudge reference to his Parks character? So on board with everything about this. In the final two episodes, Barry helps Dr. Max (Joshua Jackson) after an earthquake and a tsunami rock the ship, leaving them stranded on land. Between his endless chitchat, his absolutely hilarious attempts at speaking Spanish, and the fact that his fiance turns out to be Mean Girls star Jonathan Bennett, we couldn’t have loved O’Heir’s appearance anymore.
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Photo: ABC We love a crossover and getting to see Angela Bassett’s 9-1-1 character, Athena Grant, make her way onto The Odyssey was just pure fun. While fans were initially questioning how in any world she could be on a boat after her own honeymoon in the other ABC produced series ended in a cruise ship flipping upside down, Doctor Odyssey explained how she became trapped and had no option but to stay. She managed to make the most of it though, catching bad guys trying to rob the ship, and Athen even help Avery (Phillipa Soo) through her pregnancy dilemma. Who doesn’t welcome a mama bear moment?
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Photo: ABC/Disney We love a singer-turned-actress who is down for anything and that is Shania Twain through and through with this show. First showing up in the “Singles Week” episode at the beginning of the season and playing a “Glam-ma,” she showed that age is just a number in many ways as she becomes pregnant from her trist with Captain Robert. She later comes back to reveal the pregnancy to her baby’s father, causing for more drama and fun on the ship. Twain embraced it all and gave us a fun storyline that could also carry over into Season 2 so fingers crossed.
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Photo: ABC/Disney The 70s hair, the monologue about moving on and letting her go so that Robert could find peace and happiness with his new love, everything about Dianna Agron’s appearance worked for me. And, most importantly, it was so short and sweet that it left me wanting more, even if that came in the form of more delusions for Captain Robert. If the show is gifted a second season at ABC, we will personally be on the frontlines asking that they bring her back to play a ghost haunting him or something. Hey, anything can happen on The Odyssey.
Doctor Odyssey Season 1 is currently streaming on Hulu and Disney+.
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