How NBC Feels About The One Chicago Cast Exits
It's been a season of change for all three of the One Chicago dramas, and if you think NBC's worried about that — well, they know that things can be fluid and a good procedural knows how to roll with the punches.
"It's interesting because every year there are cast changes, and every year someone asks the same question, But [those shows] just keep going on," Jeff Bader, President of Program Planning Strategy for NBCUniversal Entertainment, told TVLine in June. Furthering his point, Bader added, "cast comes in, cast goes out...We're thrilled with how the Chicagos do on Wednesday. We have no plans on changing anything on that night."
Bader speaks from pure working knowledge of the television world here — after all, how many times have doctors scrubbed in and out of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital during the 20-plus season run of "Grey's Anatomy"? Many long-lived medical and procedural drams, such as "ER," and branches of the "Law & Order" franchise, have switched out actors over their runs, even losing major characters. Usually, it's the drama of the cases that keep audiences tuning back in versus any one character — or so popular wisdom informs.
The One Chicago shows are unique due to both the number of actors they've shed over the past two seasons and how vital their characters have been to the series, however, leaving audiences wondering how many losses are too many losses.
The number of One Chicago regulars who have exited their shows reaches into the teens
All three of the One Chicago series have lost a number of major characters over the past. "Chicago Fire" is suffering the worst among the trio of shows; Eamonn Walker stepped back as a regular and from this role as Chief Wallace Boden during Season 12; Kara Killmer's Sylvie Brett married Matt Casey (Jesse Spencer), and both actors departed the program, with their alter-egos heading to happiness. Alberto Rosende's Blake Gallo found himself a new home with his extended family out of state and left town. Even Rome Flynn's Derrick Gibson lasted for just six episodes before being shuffled offscreen.
"Chicago P.D." is still reeling from the departure of Jay Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer) during Season 10 and will be forced to cope with the loss of Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) in the wake of her exit from the force during Season 11.
"Chicago Med" has suffered through the smallest number of changes thus far, with Dominic Rains declining to return on a regular basis as Crockett Marcel for Season 10, and Nick Gehlfuss's Will Halstead and Brian Tee's Ethan Choi both departing for happy lives off-screen during Season 8.
All three dramas are hard at work reversing these so-called curses; Michael Bradway and Jocelyn Hudon have managed to hold on and enter Season 15 of "Chicago Fire" as regulars, and the show is casting a new character to replace Boden as chief for Season 15. Bojana Novakovic has been added to "Chicago P.D." as the troubled Jo, and "Med" will add Sophia Ali and Luke Mitchell. We'll see how long they all last on the mean streets of Chicago this fall.