Brilliant Minds: Alex Ozerov-Meyer shares a personal story connected to John Doe

John Doe finally got a voice in Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7. Alex Ozerov-Meyer talked to us about having that voice, and the way the story had a personal connection to him.

Caution: We delve into SPOILERS for Brilliant Minds season 1, episode 7 in this interview.

We got the most heartbreaking storyline of Brilliant Minds yet. After waiting six episodes for the doctors to finally find out what was going on with John Doe and get him into the clinical trial, it’s all come to an end. John Doe, who is actually called Roman, finally got a voice. And he used that voice in a way that suited him.

Roman couldn’t live as a shell of himself anymore. Even with the chip to allow him to communicate, he couldn’t go through with that sort of future. So, he asked the doctors to allow him to die. This was all about bodily autonomy and respecting a patient’s wishes. While it took Wolf some time, he eventually did, and the show managed to tell this story in such a beautiful, but bittersweet, way.

We got a chance to speak with Alex Ozerov-Meyer, who played Roman, to talk about what it was like to finally get to interact with the other actors on the screen. He also shared a personal connection to the story.

Alex Ozerov-Meyer shared Roman’s voice and difficult decision in Brilliant Minds

Hidden Remote: What was it like to finally be able to interact with the cast?

Alex Ozerov-Meyer: I love that you’re asking that because it was four episodes that I was just strictly laying in bed. I was interacting with the cast as myself, as the actor, but I was mainly just watching them do their own work, just hearing them prepare and work the scenes, while I was just motionless in bed trying not to blink.

Then when Episode 7 came around, I realized I had so many scenes with all of the lead cast, and each scene was specific to their own very particular aspects of themselves. It was such a great relief, and I was excited to connect with everyone, to use acting as a way of connecting with them, particularly with Zach [Zachary Quinto]. Zach is such an incredible and heartwarming person on set. He’s very tender and very caring, but at the same time, it’s like he is preserving his energy. He’s got this shield when he’s not filming to preserve his energy, to make sure everything’s running smoothly. I feel like I got to know Zach a little bit more through acting, and it was just an incredible joy to experience.

HR: There’s this beautiful element that Roman is taking in so much without being able to move. He’s listening to everything. Can you share what it was like to bring this to life, especially as you interacted with each cast member?

AOM: You’re so right for pointing out that Roman’s very observant. He’s got his heart, he’s very open, and he’s not afraid of his feelings. He’s not afraid to help people. It was really amazing to play a character who views people through this lens of humanity, and it was really special to embody that, to have to sit in my body and be able to project it.

Each character has their own special thing that they’re struggling with, and to see that, to ort of nudge them into that direction. As Roman says, “take it from a locked-in patient, there is no time like the present.” And then later he tells Wolf “So, my question to you is what are you waiting for?” I just love that so much, even watching it back. It hit me, and it wasn’t even strange. I’m watching myself and it affected me.

Roman is this sort of wonderful wise presence. He tells people what they needed to hear, and then it propels them. I’m so grateful that I was part of that storyline.

Alex Ozerov-Meyer shares his personal connection to Roman's story

HR: From what I understand, this role helped you in your personal life with a situation. Would you like to speak to that?

AOM: Absolutely! When I first got this role, I didn’t know what the arc was going to be like. All I knew was that I was playing John Doe and he had locked-in syndrome. So, I’m on set one day and I get a text from my agent and he says, “hey, bud, uh looks like your character dies in Episode 7. It’s been a great run. Let’s keep the momentum going.”

I was a little bit bummed out because I was really looking forward to the storyline. Like, what is the recovery going to be like? It seems like all the rest of the characters were so invested in John Dow, and I’d been doing so much research about real-life people who have locked-in syndrome, and that there is a path to recovery. So, why wasn’t it possible for John Doe?

Then maybe a week later, I was getting ready for bed with my wife and I get the script for Episode 7, and I’m getting nervous. It was titled “The Man from Grozny,” and I’m like, that’s Chechnya; that’s Russia. There’s no other characters that are Russian on this show, so I start reading, and I’m like “Oh my God, this whole episode is a backstory for John Doe.”

I got to the end, and my heart just dropped. I looked over to my wife, and I say, “This is Evert.”

I had a friend named Evert Houston and he moved to New York from Canada when his wife got a big job in New York City. It was the city of his dreams, where he lived as a young man earlier in his life, and he claims that it made him a man. So, he’s in his 40s and finally able to move back to that city and start afresh, and within a couple of weeks, he’s diagnosed with an aggressive bone cancer, sarcoma. He went under many treatments, chemo and the such, and he went into remission.

Later, he found out that it was back and it was terminal. Instead of going through chemo, he told me his plan was to stop chemo and go travel the world with his wife. He was going to have the most amazing food and enjoy life’s wonders. Then he was going to come back to Toronto and host a big art party with all the people he loved and “then I’m going to bounce.” He said he was going to apply for MAID, which is Medical Assistance in Dying in Canada. He picked a date and he was going to pass on.

I couldn’t believe it. I thought he was going to beat cancer and he was going to pull through. It was very difficult to even grasp the idea that he was going to pass on. So, when I read Episode 7, I’m thinking, “Oh my God, this is Evert. My character in the show is making the exact same decision to no longer experience life in this way, to no longer live life in this version.” And I just stopped in my tracks.

That was a very difficult on his family and on everyone else, but to experience that and play a character who is going through that choice, it really helped me to face this reality and to stop avoiding it, and to tackle it head on.

When I read the episode, I told the showrunner and the rest of the executives about how this relates to me and how important this episode is to me. They were so supportive and they were so encouraging to take time off and make sure that I was with my friend.

This really helped me understand his side of the story. I knew that he had gone through all these treatments and done the heavy lifting, and now, what’s best for him is to make sure that his family is okay and that they’re not burdened by this, and that he’s not suffering any longer. It helped me come to terms with this and accept that it is the best thing. It just put everything into perspective.

After we were done filming, I would take time off everything and just be there with my friend. I knew I had to prevent any future regret on my part by knowing I was there for him. At the end of the day, a person wants the experiences and exchanges with the people closest to them. That really helped me.

HR: I am so sorry to hear of Evert’s story. With all of this, is there anything that you’d like people to take from Roman’s story?

AOM: Absolutely. The patient’s opinion is everything. We’re living in such a strange time where people’s autonomy is being take away, where women’s rights are being taken away. So, I think to play a character who’s so certain of what he wants and that he is sure of his decision and to see these doctors respect that and to see it from their point of view, to have empathy and compassion, is important.

Sometimes, we give more grace to our pets that are getting older and suffering. We don’t do this for humans enough. We don’t give them the same sort of grace. We’re like “push through; don’t be weak.” But what if I want to just spend the last moments with people around me?

So, I want viewers to take from this that first of all, try to destigmatize MAID.

Also, one of the last conversations I had with Evert was he said “life is so precious.” He wanted me to make the most out of every moment. That’s what Roman says. He’s like “what are you waiting for?” I really want people to be kind and empathetic to one another because we really don’t know the other side.

Note: This interview has been condensed for publication purposes.

Brilliant Minds airs Mondays at 10/9c on NBC. Catch up the following day on Peacock.

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