Kahyun Kim, Mekki Leeper, Kaliko Kauahi at the Hard Rock Hotel on Saturday, November 15, 2025 at the New York Comedy Fest Screening of ST. DENIS MEDICAL | ©2025 NBC / Scott Gries

Created by Eric Ledgin & Justin Spitzer, ST. DENIS MEDICAL is a half-hour mockumentary comedy series, which is on NBC Monday nights with the second half of its second season, January 9, with episodes streaming on Peacock. Set at at an underfunded Oregon hospital, ST. DENIS MEDICAL has a staff who confides in the documentary crew following them around, a la THE OFFICE.

Kaliko Kauahi (pronounced Ko-ah-hee) plays veteran nursing administrator Val and Kahyun Kim plays travel nurse Serena. Kauahi, originally from Hawai’i, was a series regular on SUPERSTORE and had guest roles as medical professionals on UNEXPECTED, TALES FROM THE CATHOLIC CHURCH OF ELVIS!, MYSTERY ER, and ELI, in addition to playing other sorts of characters on a wide variety of TV series.

Kim, originally from Korea, played the character New Media in the fantasy series AMERICAN GODS. Her film credits include BAD MATCH, THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT, TAKE ME TO TARZANA, COCAINE BEAR, ABOVE THE CLOUDS, FIRE ISLAND, UPON WAKING, and DOUBLE EXPOSURE.

Both Kim ad Kauahi participate in a Q&A panel for ST. DENIS MEDICAL hosted by NBC for the Television Critics Association and subsequently attend the afterparty. This interview is derived from comments they made on the panel and from a subsequent joint follow-up conversation at the party.

What do their characters Val and Serena think of each other?

Both women laugh.

“I think we like each other,” Kauahi opines.

ST. DENIS MEDICAL Season 2 Key Art | ©2025 NBC

Kim agrees. “I think we like each other a lot.”

“I think there’s a lot of respect here,” Kauahi elaborates, “which we don’t maybe have for the other characters, but there’s a mutual respect. I feel like Val actually listens to Serena, and she doesn’t listen to anybody.”

“Yeah,” Kim concurs again. “I think Serena really likes Val. I mean, that’s my choice.”

SUPERSTORE was created by ST. DENIS MEDICAL’s Spitzer, with Ledgin aboard as a writer/producer. How is it for Kauahi to return to work for the duo in a very different role?

“I’m so happy and grateful to get to play this part and work with these people again,” Kauahi replies. “Val is very different from Sandra [on SUPERSTORE]. So, it was just a chance to do something different. Whether it is more or less like me, I don’t know. She’s sassy.”

At the outset, Serena is unaware that newly-hired nurse Matt (Mekki Leeper) has an enormous crush on her. Why does it take Serena so long to notice Matt’s feelings?

“She’s not that bright,” Kim jokes. “She’s bright, she just doesn’t imagine that for herself.”

It’s Kauahi’s turn to agree. “Yeah. I think Val actually plays a big part in that.”

“Val sees it from the beginning,” Kim observes. “Because at some point, she’s fed up with waiting, so she tries to help it along.”

Do their characters, or any characters, ever see footage of their colleagues talking to the documentary crew?

“No, I don’t think they do,” Kauahi says, “because there are a lot of secret things that are said.”

“Yeah,” Kim affirms. “I think everyone treats [the documentary interviews] like a safe space, and they just have a little confessional, so it’ll be what they say.”

Was there a learning curve for the actors in terms of dealing with the faux-documentary sequences?

“It took me a little bit to get used to it,” Kauahi observes, “because you’re so trained to never look at camera, to not direct your lines to the camera. But honestly, at this point, it’s so second nature to us that it’s really fun to do it. I actually seek out those moments to look at the camera, because it’s so fun, and I feel like you get to tell a different story. You get to tell how the character really feels.”

Kim offers that sometimes it’s hard to leave the technique behind. “I shot something [during] I think one of our hiatus weeks. It was a very dramatic thing and I wanted to just turn and look, and I did, and the director said, ‘Don’t do that.’ I love breaking the fourth wall.”

Ledgin contributes, “There are moments when I’m watching a take of Kahyun and the way she’s looking into the camera, I feel judged as the person watching it.”

Kim is delighted. “Thank you. Thank you, Korean mother. Yes.”

Do either Kauahi or Kim play scenes any differently if they know their characters will be commenting on what happens in the documentary footage?

“I don’t think so,” Kauahi says. “You’re having the experience in the moment, not knowing that you’re going to comment on it later, so it’s more honest that way.”

Kim agrees once more. “Piggy-back on that.”

What kinds of research did Kim and Kauahi do in terms of playing nurses?

“We have been on nurse TikTok a lot,” Kim relates, “so I’ve gotten to listen to a lot of actual stories. And another friend of mine is a nurse in real life, and so that’s how I got mostly my background.”

Also, Kauahi points out that Kim can turn to a relative for help.

“My mom works at a hospital,” Kim reveals. “So, I got some of that.”

Kauahi says that her mother also used to work at a hospital. “And I have a lot of friends who are nurses. So, those are the first calls I made to make sure that what we were doing was hopefully authentic.”

And what do Kauahi and Kim most want people to know about ST. DENIS MEDICAL?

“We’re funny, and really, really heartwarming,” Kim states.

“It’s a great cast with great writing.” Kauahi then advises, “Sit back and watch for thirty minutes and have a good time.”

Kim agrees one more time. “Yeah!”

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Article: Exclusive Interview with Actors Kaliko Kauahi and Kahyun Kim on Season 2 of the NBC comedy series ST. DENIS MEDICAL

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