Are Max and Helen really leaving New Amsterdam?

Spoilers ahead of New Amsterdam season 4.

New Amsterdam season 4 returned with a bang Tuesday, Sept. 21 as fans were reunited with Max and Helen, aka Sharpwin, moments after their big sweeping season 3 finale kiss.

The premiere “More Joy” wasted no time bringing the heat as the two engaged in a steamy sequence that bared all between the two. But, what initially starts as pure happiness for them, slides into contention once the sun rises and Helen remembers London.

To refresh your memory, when Helen dropped her niece Mina off at the University of Cambridge, she’d returned home for the first time in years. While there, she’d learned that the clinic she used to work at was in desperate need of a medical director.

Helen tells Max in the season 4 premiere that she’s going to take the position. Being back home broke her wide open, and she doesn’t want to relinquish that feeling. Though she doesn’t say it, the implication is that she’s choosing herself even though it means there’s no possibility of a future for her and Max.

It’s an incredible moment of growth for her and pay off for the audience as we’ve spent seasons watching Helen put Max first even at her own personal and professional expense. Last season she’d broken out of that pattern, and it seems we’re continuing to further Helen’s prioritization of herself and her needs which is good.

What’s also good is Max fighting for her. Rather than accepting Helen’s position that a long distance relationship wouldn’t work, he pushes her to see that it can if they try. He loves her too much to let her go, and they’re finally acting on their feelings. After declaring his love for Helen to the street below and listening her return the sentiment, the two decide to be together and figure everything out as it comes.

Considering the both of them are busy professionals and parents, a wrench is thrown in their plans at first until Dr. Wilder, a doctor interviewing for a position at New Amsterdam, encourages Max to continue fighting for Helen. Granted, she meant professionally since he made her aware that Helen is leaving but the advice still resonates.

It resonates so strongly that during Sharpwin’s rooftop scene–a staple of the show that’s reached icon status–he tells Helen that he wants to go with her to London. It’s a surprising turn of events that now has viewers wondering if the two really are about to hop across the pond together.

Here’s what we know!

Are Sharpwin leaving New Amsterdam?

In an interview with TV Insider, showrunner David Schulner says that they are.

"Max and Sharpe are leaving. I want to believe Max when he says that he’s going…No one believes me when I say that Max and Sharpe are going to London. There’s a lot to do before they leave. There’s a lot to put into place before they go. But they’re going."

We’re, of course, taking that answer with a grain of salt. Season 4’s tagline may be ‘Love Heals’ but that season opener made it very clear that Sharpwin being in love doesn’t mean they’re exempt from rockiness in their relationship. Even the promo for next episode has Helen telling Max that she doesn’t trust him as a partner.

But at least Schulner isn’t dragging us through a “Will they leave?” storyline. He also told TV Insider, “In Episode 2, Max tells everyone that he and Sharpe are leaving,” so the ball will start rolling on their departure pretty quickly. The questions left are when they’ll leave, how, and if they’ll stay.

Max sees Dr. Wilder as his successor but Schulner teased that it’ll be awhile before she accepts. Besides the fact that things keep going wrong at New Amsterdam, it’s one thing for Wilder to have wanted a position at the hospital. It’s another thing entirely to accept responsibility of the whole medical center.

There’s also Luna to factor in. It’s a no-brainer that she’d be going to London with Max, but we can’t forget the fight her grandparents put up over her in season 3. Could we see another battle on our hands? Being a train ride away is not the same as being separated by a continent. While they don’t have a say in Max moving that doesn’t mean they won’t try to stop him from going.

We’re too early in the season to know where this storyline is going but we do at least have confirmation that Sharpwin will be heading off to London at some point.

Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more New Amsterdam news and coverage!