‘The Pitt’ Actress Tal Anderson Talks Becca’s New Boyfriend In Season 2, The Importance Of Respecting The Body Autonomy Of Disabled People & Autism Awareness Month Book Release

SPOILER ALERT: The following reveals major plot points from HBO Max‘s The Pitt Season 2.

Tal Anderson‘s character, Becca King, on HBO Max’s The Pitthas stepped out of her sister Dr. Melissa King’s (Taylor Dearden) cellphone in Season 2, and she has some big news.

Becca first appears in this season’s seventh episode, and she’s at Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center’s emergency room waiting to see Dr. Frank Langdon (Patrick Ball). Her sister, Mel, is surprised she didn’t ask to see her for a medical issue, but Mel is respectful. She was pretty caught up with her deposition, anyway, leaving Becca to meet privately with Langdon.

The story spreads out across further episodes, with Mel asking Becca about what brought her to the ER. Becca reveals she has a urinary tract infection, which Mel tells her sister is a common issue that could be caused by various things. Becca tells Mel that she learned from Langdon that women could get UTI’s from having sex. Mel was stunned and asked her sister if she was having sex, and Becca confirmed that she and her boyfriend had been.

Mel is shocked at the news, not only because Becca never told her she was in a relationship or having sex, but also because Mel starts feeling like she’s being left out of her sister’s life. Additionally, the fact that her sister was having sex worried Mel as she wondered if this new man in Becca’s life was taking advantage of her. But Becca tells Mel that she learned about sex and her body in a class at the independent living center where she resides, and is being responsible.

Becca’s storyline is the impetus for a longer conversation about the importance of respect for body autonomy for everyone, but especially disabled people, which Anderson spoke to Deadline about recently, as well as her upcoming new book, “Oh, Tal, Not Like That,” to be released in April in line with Autism Awareness Month, and more.

In her new book with Michael Richey White, Tal starts the school year off excited, but at school, she quickly learns that in the classroom, teachers like kids to follow directions and do things the way they are taught. Tal has different ideas, however, and classmates and teachers work hard to help her learn the“right way.” In the end, they all learn a valuable lesson: there are more ways than one to get things done. Once again, Tal wins over hearts and confirms it’s okay to be different, be yourself, and to follow your own path.

Our interview can be found below.

DEADLINE: Becca’s storyline has been expanded on greatly this season. Were you interested in exploring more of Becca’s storyline after Season 1?

TAL ANDERSON: I’m super excited by the storyline in general. It’s so great that Becca can show her independence, and she can also show more of who she is. I love the role of Becca, but not because I am Becca, but more because I can relate to her, and I can understand her.  Even though I have lower support needs than Becca, I also 100% rely on the love and support of my family in order to live my best life.

I also appreciate that she’s confident and she knows what she wants.  I’m so proud to have the opportunity to bring Becca to life. She’s written so well and with so much respect, and she’s teaching a giant audience about how disabled people should be incorporated into everyone’s lives, and I think that’s great.

DEADLINE: What’s it like working closely with Taylor and specifically playing sisters?

ANDERSON: Taylor is such an amazing, amazing actor. She really is amazing. She’s funny and supportive, and she understands me. We read through lines before going on before filming a scene. She makes it really easy to feel like I have a sister. She’s super funny and supportive, and made sure that I felt comfortable on set and knew where everything was. And she understands me, which is very helpful.

I didn’t expect Becca’s story to take this turn for Season 2. I found out from Taylor what was going to happen in Episode 10, and I was so shocked but so excited.  I’m just happy that Becca gets a chance to show her independence and that viewers get to learn more about who she is— not just that she’s “Mel’s Sister.”

DEADLINE: Becca has heard a lot about Dr. Langdon from Mel, and now he is her doctor. Why was it important that Becca had a doctor who was not her sister?

ANDERSON: From Becca’s perspective, I think she’s thrilled to have Dr. Langdon as her doctor. She trusts him, even though she’s never met him, because she knows how much Mel respects him. He’s neutral and also non-threatening in every way. And you know, trust is a given, but from the story’s perspective, I think having a neutral party involved is necessary, because we’re talking about Becca’s independence and right to privacy.

This is a problem for disabled people in general, because we tend to be infantilized by others. I guess because disabled people are more vulnerable or more sheltered, and it’s not appropriate in any situation. The bottom line is that Becca is an adult, and she’s entitled to live her life the way she wants, and she’s entitled to pursue happiness just like everyone else. Having Dr. Langdon be the one to tell her and to remind her that she’s in control of letting people know private details about her health and her life is a statement. It’s letting Becca know that she’s allowed to decide what she shares about her private life.

DEADLINE: This storyline brings up the important topic of body autonomy for disabled people. Just because Becca is autistic doesn’t mean she can’t make decisions about her body.

ANDERSON: Becca is disabled and has high support needs, but that doesn’t make her less of a person. She has a right, just like everybody, to make her own decisions about her body, and she’s learning how to navigate this new stage in her life. I think she’s really excited that she’s having this new experience, and she’s going to figure out how to navigate through it. She will also take Mel’s feelings into account, and this is very new territory for the sisters.

DEADLINE: Do you feel like Mel wants to protect Becca?

ANDERSON: Yes, Becca is all Mel has, and she loves her. But all of this is also bringing up personal feelings Mel has about her own life, and at a time when everything is exploding all around her. I think Becca has been dying to tell Mel [about the boyfriend]but also doesn’t want Mel to feel bad. There’s also this part of Becca that is maybe being a tiny bit selfish, you know? As much as she loves her sister, she’s excited about having a life of her own, so she convinces herself that it would hurt Mel’s feelings. But really, she just wants something for herself. I don’t blame her.

But also, Becca probably doesn’t fully understand that she probably made a mistake doing that, and she’s going to have to figure that out.

DEADLINE: Mel is also quite young and figuring out her life, but she’s also responsible for both Becca and herself, and all while working on being a doctor. It’s understandable that she doesn’t have it all figured out yet, right?

ANDERSON: Mel is freaking out in general. Listen, Mel is not Becca’s mom. I don’t have a sister myself, but I think that it must be really hard for Mel to be a caregiver and a sister at the same time. And this theme is happening in another room in the ED, with Jude and his sister. This is really difficult for someone to do, no matter how much you love your siblings.

DEADLINE: You have a great bond with Taylor. Is there anyone else on The Pitt you’re enjoying working with?

ANDERSON: Oh, my goodness, yes. Everyone at The Pitt is amazing to work with: Noah [Wyle]Patrick, Katherine [LaNasa]and I just love Shawn [Hatosy]. He was very fun to work with. He was so gentle and very kind when he directed me in Episode 9. What a great episode that was.

When I got on set for Episode 9, it was the first time I had the opportunity to meet Noah. I was walking into the green room, and he crossed my path, going in ahead of me. Then he stopped and turned around. In that moment, I felt exactly like Becca did when meeting Dr. Robby. I held out my hand and introduced myself, “Hi, I’m Tal.” And he smiled exactly like Dr. Robby did, amused, and said, “I know. Glad to have you back.” I think I said thank you, but it was kind of a blur. Later, I realized, Duh. Of course, he knows who I am. He’s a producer. And now I realize he knows everybody on set and connects with everyone in the same warm way.

DEADLINE: Before we conclude this interview, please tell me about your upcoming new book. It’s your second book and the second book in the series that you created with Michael. What else can you share?

ANDERSON: So the concept for this series started after I met the illustrator, Michael Richey White, after working on the Netflix series Atypical. We’re both autistic and share common lived experiences, so we got along right away. Michael is amazingly talented. All the situations in these books really happened to me, and many also happened to him. We’re both very creative and always trying to express what we were thinking and feeling through our art when we were young. Unfortunately, it was never quite understood by teachers or other students. So, we decided to create a book that speaks to kids like us. I chose a school for the setting of the second book because school is where both Michael and I remember getting pressured to be more like everyone else. Those years were tough, and we both felt really, really misunderstood.

I wanted to center the book around this personal, lived experience, but also show it with a positive spin. I know there are kids out there who are feeling just like Michael and I did. With the books, we want kids to know that being yourself and following your own path is not wrong, and that they should never let go of their individuality.

This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.