I was in two episodes playing Christopher Reeve’s character’s emissary. They wanted to have my character announce Dr Swan’s death, which I thought was exploitative.

Kidder is describing a moment when professional opportunity collided with personal ethics. She frames the proposed plot point—having her character deliver news of Dr. Swan’s death—as “exploitative,” implying it would trade on real-world tragedy or audience sentiment rather than serve the story. The remark highlights an actor’s agency in resisting narrative choices that feel sensational, disrespectful, or commercially motivated. It also gestures to the power dynamics of television production: performers may be asked to lend credibility to storylines they find morally dubious, and refusing can be a form of principled boundary-setting.