If You Think Suits Wasted Katrina Bennett, Check Out This 4-Season Sci-Fi Show Where Amanda Schull Plays The Lead
12 Monkeys is the perfect show for those who think Suits underutilized Katrina Bennett. Though the series largely focused on Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) and Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), Suits was an ensemble show, with many fascinating characters who circulated in and out throughout its run. While Harvey’s return in Suits LA has brought some of that same great energy from the original, the spinoff does not have that same draw with its background characters as Suits did, even for later characters like Katrina.
Katrina emerged during one of Suits’ best seasons, her growth throughout the series and deeper character moments adding to the overall emotional narrative, with her journey and relationship with Louis providing strong beats the show would lack otherwise. Part of that great characterization came from Schuell’s performance, resulting in a compelling character that, for some reason, the show neglected to expand upon, only really focusing on Katrina in season 9. Fortunately, Schuell did get a chance to showcase that same skill in another series, three years after her debut on Suits: SyFy’s 12 Monkeys.
Amanda Schull’s 12 Monkeys Is A TV Adaptation Of The 1995 Movie
Schull’s Version Debuted In 2015
Schull’s 12 Monkeys series was a TV adaptation of the 1995 movie of the same name, and it allowed her to do that same strong character work she did with Katrina on Suits. 12 Monkeys tells the story of James Cole (Aaron Stanford), a scavenger from the year 2043 who is selected to go back in time by a team of enigmatic scientists called Project Splinter. His mission is to recruit Schuell’s Dr. Cassandra “Cassie” Railly, a virologist who may be their only hope at preventing the plague that wiped out humanity from coming to pass.
Related
The TV adaptation of 12 Monkeys was very different than the Bruce Willis/Brad Pitt time-travel movie it was based on — but still just as great.
The series takes inspiration from the original 12 Monkeys film but digs deeper into its themes of fate and choice through its characters and story, creating new layers to each relationship. The time travel mechanics are also fascinating and fun from a visual standpoint, making it unique from several other time travel shows. However, Schuell’s performance is what makes 12 Monkeys a show worth revisiting, especially as her character is given much more time to develop and a more complex personal narrative than Katrina got on Suits.
12 Monkeys Gives Amanda Schull A Lot More To Work With Than Suits
Dr. Railly’s Arc Allowed Schuell A Richer Character To Explore
Schuell got to explore a deeper character arc on 12 Monkeys than she did on Suits, the former giving her more screentime to fulfill that narrative. As mentioned, Katrina was not given much to do despite being one of Suits’ best characters, her arc largely being reactive to the circumstances of the plot over proactive with few exceptions. In the case of 12 Monkeys, though, that is not the case, as Schuell gets to dig deeply into Dr. Railly’s transformation throughout the series’ four-season run.
Dr. Railly’s struggle to understand her role within the apocalypse, her adventures and the scars they leave behind, and her relationship with Cole all take center stage within 12 Monkeys, letting Schuell show off her strong character work. Her performance added a good portion of the show’s depth, and her arc highlighted how easily one can transform their fate and the consequences of those choices. That depth continues to stand in stark contrast to Katrina on Suits, whose story had the same potential but was unable to reach it due to, ironically, time.
