New Amsterdam: Tyler Labine on What’s Next for Iggy and the Weirdest Scene He’s Filmed So Far [Exclusive Interview]

We’re back with more from our conversation with New Amsterdam‘s Tyler Labine. I spoke to Labine about how Iggy has changed already, his experience filming one of the most intense scenes in New Amsterdam history, and other events coming up in Iggy’s future.  

If you haven’t seen New Amsterdam Season 2 Episode 10, “Code Silver,” beware that there are some spoilers ahead!

In the first part of our conversation with New Amsterdam‘s Tyler Labine, we discussed the shocking diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) that Iggy receives on the midseason premiere.

While the diagnosis is so new that it’s hard for us to wrap our heads around, you have to admit that Iggy has been changing since the end of Season 1 when he is accused of being inappropriately affectionate with his patients. 

The storyline about Iggy’s inappropriate behavior with patients hasn’t continued on the pages of scripts in Season 2.

But Labine said that if viewers watch carefully, we’ll notice that Iggy doesn’t actually touch many people at all until New Amsterdam Season 2 Episode 8, “What The Heart Wants,” when Max has an experience with a pregnant patient that reminds him of Georgia’s death, and Iggy puts a hand on Max’s shoulder. 

Before that, the normally “huggy” Iggy would use a very specific gesture instead of touching anyone.

“It’s almost like a phantom touch. I’ll put my hand out, but float it behind your shoulder,” Labine said. “I wanted it to be a behavioral indication that wasn’t verbalized because I feel like then that gives people the opportunity to just sort of feel it rather than be told.”

Iggy’s personal decline has to be gradual because he is still a good psychiatrist. In fact, on New Amsterdam Season 2 Episode 5, “The Kármán Line,” viewers meet Iggy’s most intense patient yet. 

Juliet (Emma Ming Hong) has callous-unemotional traits. While learning a reward system to encourage an apology from her, she insults Iggy’s weight, his kids, and even spits in his face.

Labine said the scene was as intense and uncomfortable to film as it looked on-screen. “It was weird,” he said. “[Someone] just hocking up a loogie and spitting in your face, that elicits a response out of you whether you want it to or not.”

There are effects that can be applied on set so that he didn’t actually have to be spit on, but Labine explained to me that after getting consent from Hong and her parents, he knew he wanted her to actually spit on him. “I wanted it to be this visceral a response. I felt like the best way to get that was the real thing.”

As for Hong’s performance, Labine said it’s even more amazing to watch when you know the young girl in real life. “She’s a really sweet, present, emotional young actor. And then for her to turn it all off like that and be so callous and to do and say those things with such unfeeling delivery was real…very, very difficult real acting. I don’t know a lot of adults that could do that.”

After watching “Code Silver,” we know that Juliet’s insults were probably foreshadowing Iggy’s downward spiral because they zeroed in on some of the biggest insecurities Iggy tries to hide from everyone, including his husband. 

But no matter how awful a patient seems, Labine considers his job similar to Iggy’s and keeps that in mind while preparing for scenes. “You have to take the ‘oh that kid’s crazy, oh that kid’s a brat’ or ‘that kid’s rude’ out of it and realize that it’s a chemical imbalance, or it’s brought on by trauma, PTSD, all kinds of things when kids are treated,” he said.

“So, I wanted to make sure that the level of empathy and understanding especially coming from Iggy was even more present with [Juliet’s case].”

New Amsterdam has always taken representation of mental illness and disability seriously. With Iggy’s upcoming storyline, it’s time to take self-care seriously. But as Labine explained, working on yourself can be scary.

“You feel like sometimes if you fix what’s wrong with you, you may not be as good at what you do for others. If you take the time to repair, you might not be as good of a doctor, you might not be as empathetic. If you take the time to repair, you might not be as funny of an actor,” he said. 

In other words, Iggy is going to have to take risks in his Season 2 journey whether he likes it or not. “I think Iggy likes being there for other people and he needs it. So taking time out for himself maybe scares the shit out of him.”

If Iggy has clinical narcissism, then there is a medical explanation for his actions, but that doesn’t excuse them. So, Labine said Iggy will spend some of Season 2 reconnecting with some of the McIntyre-Frome kids that viewers haven’t met yet and try to become a more present father. 

Parental competence isn’t measured by the number of kids that you have, so the adoption is off of the table for now. “But there’s been a lot of speculation about what’s going to happen with Ella’s baby,” Labine teased.

Season 2 storylines are still being finalized, but New Amsterdam just received a three-season order from NBC, so viewers can expect them to be rich.

Labine considers Diedre Friel (who plays Ella) a good friend. Considering the barista’s OCD and unexpected pregnancy, it’s surprising they haven’t shared a scene that’s made it to air yet. 

“I will say that this season is much more of a character study than Season 1 with all of the main six. Everyone’s getting to really dive into some very personal elements,” Labine said. “We’re really going to dive into the idea that Iggy is sort of, kind of spiraling into this question of ‘who am I?'”

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Watch Tyler Labine’s journey as Iggy on New Amsterdam, airing Tuesdays at 10/9c on NBC and read the first part of our interview with Labine here. 

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Tyler Labine Breaks Down that Shocking ‘New Amsterdam’ Mid-Season Premiere [Exclusive Interview]