The Resident: Why Shaunette Renée Wilson's Dr. Mina Okafor Left

Medical shows like "Grey's Anatomy" and "ER" made a habit of switching up their cast members throughout the years, which makes sense when you consider the setting: In real life, residents, fellows, and attendings migrate throughout hospital systems depending on what jobs are available and what specialties they intend to practice. That said, medical dramas aren't always that realistic, so when on-screen doctors leave hospitals, it's usually due to a much more dramatic reason, like their ex-fiancé offered them a job running a groundbreaking cardiac surgery wing in Switzerland (Sandra Oh's Cristina Yang from "Grey's Anatomy") or helping a mother give medication to her terminally ill son and violating medical standards in the process (George Clooney's character Dr. Doug Ross from "ER"), just to provide a few examples. So what about Dr. Mina Okafor, the surgical resident at Chastain Park Memorial Hospital on Fox's medical drama "The Resident," played by Shaunette Renée Wilson?

Wilson originated the role in the show's very first season in 2018 alongside actors like Matt Czuchry and Emily VanCamp (who play resident Conrad Hawkins and nurse practitioner Nic Nevin, respectively), playing the brilliant and opinionated Mina, but she ultimately left the series in 2021 during its fourth season. So why did the character leave the narrative, why did Wilson check out of "The Resident," and what has she been doing since?

After four seasons as a surgical resident on, well, "The Resident," Dr. Mina Okafor left Atlanta's fictional Chastain Park Memorial Hospital behind — but why? Not only is Mina performing complex surgeries and growing as a physician in season 4, she also finally gets together with Dr. A.J. Austin (Malcolm-Jamal Warner) after multiple seasons of fans rooting for them. (Not only that, but after a newly pregnant Nic is stabbed by a violent patient, A.J. and Mina team up in the O.R. to save her life — and they succeed.) Throughout season 4, though, Mina, who was born in Nigeria, has concerns about deportations ... and ultimately, that concern turns out to be unfortunately valid.

Mina tries to make the case that she's an extraordinarily accomplished surgeon who deserves to stay in the United States, but considering that Mina was also running an illegal clinic for low-income patients out of her apartment and was under investigation for the crime, she decides that she'll simply move back to Nigeria to settle the issue once and for all. A.J. decides to go with her, but when his mother is diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer, he realizes he has to stay in Atlanta. Mina's final episode, season 4's "Into the Unknown," sees the character leave Chastain for good.

Sometimes, an actor's departure from a show is an unpleasant surprise or a result of on-set strife. But it seems, by all appearances, that Shaunette Renée Wilson simply left "The Resident" of her own accord after playing the same character for several years. In a statement reported in The Wrap in 2021, Wilson said, "After deeply thoughtful reflection, I approached the producers some time ago asking to leave the show and they agreed — and gave my character a wonderful sendoff. I am appreciative of them for allowing me to embody as beautiful of a soul as Dr. Mina Okafor. I would also like to thank the studio, network, cast, crew and, most of all, the wonderfully dedicated fans of 'The Resident' for their support over the last four seasons."

Showrunners and executive producers Todd Harthan, Andrew Chapman, and Peter Elkoff also provided a statement to the outlet, and based on what they had to say about Wilson and Mina Okafor, they were happy they got to work with her but deeply sorry to see her go. "Losing the extraordinary Shaunette is heartbreaking for us, but we are honoring her request to leave with gratitude and respect for her contribution to the show," the three men said. "We want the fans to know that we have lots in store for A.J. as he reels from this loss, and we want Shaunette to know the door is always open."

When Mina Okafor left "The Resident," it was a huge shock for fans of the series, and in an interview with Entertainment Weekly after Mina and Wilson's final episode, Andrew Chapman expressed the sentiment, once again, that he would love for Wilson and her character to return at some point. "We're all completely heartbroken," Chapman said of Mina and Wilson's departure, making it clear that it was not an organic creative decision. "We did not want her to leave. She was so foundational to the DNA of the show. She was always so badass and a truth-teller. We are devastated to lose her, but we have told her the door is always open for her here. There's no ill will at all."

Not only that, but Chapman spoke to the importance of Mina in the narrative; as a Nigerian immigrant in the United States, she represented a radically different viewpoint from the rest of the doctors on the series and was never shy about expressing it. "This show is about what's wrong with the American medical system and how healthcare can be so corrupted by money. Mina was incorruptible," Chapman told the outlet. "She is the future of healthcare. We really wish her well, and it's okay for her to move on. But what was most important to us was that we honor her important contributions to the show and how she helped shape Chastain. Mina is not someone who would wallow in self-pity due to her circumstances."

While appearing on "The Resident," Shaunette Renée Wilson also showed up in small roles in huge projects like "Black Panther" (she plays one of the Dora Milaje soldiers seen in a flashback right at the beginning of the Marvel film) and played a supporting role in seven episodes of Showtime's "Billions." After her time on "The Resident," Wilson appeared in an episode of the anthology horror series "Into the Dark" in 2019 and the 2025 series "Washington Black."

On the big screen, Wilson recently showed up in the 2024 film "The Luckiest Man in America" alongside Paul Walter Hauser and Walton Goggins. But a year prior, she played a major supporting role in 2023's legacy sequel "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" with Harrison Ford and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Though Wilson reportedly ran into some issues on the set of Indiana Jones — she actually told Variety that she asked director James Mangold to make changes to her character Agent Mason after running into elements she deemed "a little too offensive and a bit problematic" — it was definitely an enormous opportunity for her, and she was given the opportunity to collaborate with Mangold and change the script for the better. Wilson also plays a role in the 2025 reboot "Karate Kid: Legends," and if you want to watch Wilson in "The Resident," it's streaming on Netflix and Hulu now.