‘Chicago Fire,’ ‘Med’ & ‘P.D.’ Stars Tease New Faces Amid Major Cast Shakeups
Some fresh faces are reporting for duty in the Windy City.
As OneChicago fans are surely aware, the teams of Chicago Fire, Chicago Med and Chicago P.D. will look quite different when the NBC series return this fall in the wake of longtime stars LaRoyce Hawkins and Joe Miñoso‘s exits fromP.D. andFire, respectively.
And while viewers were understandably shocked by the recent cast shakeups, the shows’ stars were equally devasted by their friends’ departures.
As Darren Barnet, a.k.a. Chicago Med‘s Dr. John Frost, confessed to E! News in an exclusive interview, “They will be missed.”
Chicago P.D.‘s Arienne Mandi echoed Barnet in lamenting Hawkins’ unexpected exit after 13 seasons playing Officer Kevin Atwater.
“One of our beloved is departing,” Mandi—who portrays cop Eva Imani—reflected. “He’s been very cherished for many years and will continue to be a foundation of the show. We love him a lot.”
But with multiple mainstay actors leaving the OneChicago universe next season, there will be plenty of space on the call sheet for new cast members.
And Barnet is loving his new co-workers.
“All these shows have such a great ability to cast wonderful people to work with,” the Never Have I Ever alum explained to E!. “Everyone that is new that I’ve met, I love and I’m really having an optimistic outlook on how it’s all going to unfold.”
Meanwhile, Fire‘s Jocelyn Hudon—better known as paramedic Lyla Novak—teased, “We on Chicago Fire have a bunch of new probies [probational firefighters], so that is very exciting for us and I know the audience is going to love them.”
Griffin Nagel/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
Despite the inevitable changes on set, Mandi emphasized what makes the NBC procedural’s so special to be a part of.
“The cast and the crew are one,” she shared. “We’re all family and everyone has known each other for years and some people have really grown in their positions. Everyone feels really familiar to each other and just want to succeed and have fun while we’re doing it.”
Peter Gordon/NBC/Lori Allen
And Barnet feels exactly the same about his Med team members.
“It’s uncommon in a room full of actors, but the lack of ego I experience among these people,” he told E!, “there’s never this sense of competition or trying to outdo one another. It really is a team effort.”
OneChicago Wednesdays return Oct. 7 on NBC.
In the meantime, keep reading to look back at more TV stars’ shocking series exits.
—Reporting by Amanda Champagne-Meadows
Peter Gordon/NBC
Joe Miñoso, Chicago Fire
The OneChicago fanbase was shocked when news broke that Miñoso, who has portrayed firefighter Joe Cruz since the show debuted in 2012, will be leaving the NBC drama during its upcoming 15th season.
Virginia Sherwood/NBC
Reid Scott, Law & Order
The Veep alum, who has portrayed Detective Vincent Riley for the past three seasons, will exit the long-running NBC crime drama during the show’s upcoming 26th season, set to premiere fall 2026.
Michael Yarish /Paramount+
Zach Gilford, Criminal Minds: Evolution
The Paramount+ drama’s season 19 finale, released July 23, confirmed the longtime starwill not be returning for season 20 after his character Elias Voit was locked up in prison for a murder he took the blame for.
“It was hard to say goodbye,” Gilford told Us Weekly of his exit. “It definitely was one of my favorite characters I’ve ever gotten to play and partially because what a gift. Every season I got to do a different side of this character. It wasn’t like I was just doing the same thing every year.”
Clifton Prescod/Bravo
Amanda Batula, Summer House
Days after West Wilson confirmed his Summer House exit, news broke that Amanda, who has been a main cast member of the Bravo series since season two, will also not be returning for season 11 amid the fallout from their bombshell romance.
Clifton Prescod/Bravo
West Wilson, Summer House
After his secret love affair with Amanda Batula nearly destroyed the cast friend group dynamic following season 10, it was no shocker that West walked away from the scandal (and the series) in June 2026 just weeks before season 11 was set to start filming.
Disney/Mike Taing
Bridget Regan, The Rookie
The Rookie‘s corrupt lawyer Monica Stevens was no novice when it came to escaping death. “She’s escaped multiple assassinations,” actress Bridget Regan recounted to TV Insider of her character’s four-season journey, “and prison time and being thrown in a woodchipper.”
So when the attorney met her end on an April 2026 episode, “I wasn’t surprised,” Regan noted. “I thought, ‘Fair enough.’ She’s had an amazing run, four years on this show. I’m only filled with gratitude.”
Bruce Glikas/Getty Images
Whitney Leavitt, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives
After making her big break on Dancing With the Stars and landing a starring role in Chicago and Broadway, the Utah native announced season five of the hit Hulu reality show will be her last as she’s moving on to other professional projects.
Warrick Page/HBO Max
Supriya Ganesh, The Pitt
Dr. Samira Mohan is checking out of The Pitt. Actress Supriya Ganesh will not be returning for season three of the HBO Max drama, Variety reported in April.
The exit isn’t so shocking to fans given that Ganesh’s character has been planning to take on a new residency program at another medical center.
Bill Inoshita/CBS via Getty Images
Rocky Carroll, NCIS
The crime procedural said goodbye to Director Leon Vance (played byRocky Carroll) in a March 2026 episode, 18 years after the leader’s debut in season five. During the 500th episode, Vance was killed in a shooting with a corrupt agent and welcomed to heaven by late Chief Medical Examiner Donald “Ducky” Mallard (played by Adam Campbell).
Virginia Sherwood/NBC
Mehcad Brooks, Law & Order
Mehcad Brooks shocked fans in 2025 when it was revealed he was leaving the NBC crime drama ahead of season 25.
Brooks, who joined the show in 2022, portrayed Detective Jalen Shaw for three seasons.
Tina Thorpe/Disney via Getty Images
Kim Raver & Kevin McKidd, Grey’s Anatomy
Kevin McKidd and Kim Raver, who have played Dr. Owen Hunt and Dr. Teddy Altman respectively for nearly 20 years, shocked fans with news that they are leaving the medical drama, with their final episode being the season 22 finale May 7, 2026.
Bravo/Danielle Levitt
Jenna Lyons, The Real Housewives of New York City
Jenna Lyons announced she will not be returning forThe Real Housewives of New York City‘s 16th season.
“The rumors …..Are true,” the former J. Crew Creative Director wrote onInstagramNov. 21. “I was grateful to be asked to join season 16 ofRHONY‘as a friend of ‘- knowing my personal life was not really available to be filmed, we agreed that made sense.”
The fashion icon—who joined the Bravo series for season 14 in 2022—explained that she later realized being a supporting castmember wasn’t for her.
“And after thinking it through I have made the difficult decision not return to the show,” she continued. “I would be the oldest and only openly gay woman on the show and feel like this is an opportunity for a new dynamic to emerge.”
Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Chrishell Stause, Selling Sunset
After nine seasons, the A-list realtor is done selling mega-mansions on the Netflix reality show.
“I’ve gotten to a place where I don’t need the show financially,” Chrishell announed in November via social media. “I’m lucky to have other forms of employment, because it’s no longer good for my mental health.”
Bravo
Jax Taylor, The Valley
Jax Taylor announced he will not be returning toThe Valleyfor season three amid growing concern from fans about his behavior during the show’s second season.
“Right now, my focus needs to be on my sobriety, my mental health, and coparenting,” the Bravo star—who is embroiled in a nasty divorce from estranged wife Brittany Cartwright—shared in July 2025. “Taking this time is necessary for me to become the best version of myself—especially for our son, Cruz.”
Mike Coppola/NBC via Getty Images
Michael Longfellow, Emil Wakim & Devon Walker, Saturday Night Live
The Saturday Night Live stars all announced within days of each other that they would not be returning for the sketch comedy series’ 51st season.
Longfellow and Walker each spent three seasons on SNL while Wakim exited after just one season.
Todd Williamson/NBC
Heidi Gardner & Ego Nwodim, Saturday Night Live
Weeks after Longfellow, Walker and Wakim left SNL, longtime fan-favorites Gardner and Nwodim also confirmed they would not be returning for season 51 after eight and seven seasons, respectively.
Disney/Bahareh Ritter
Sofia Mattsson, General Hospital
Sofia Mattsson exited the long-running soap opera in summer 2025 after seven years playing Sasha Gilmore. Her character left Port Charles for Paris.
HBO Max/Warrick Page
Tracy Ifeachor, The Pitt
The Pitt star Tracy Ifeachor walked away from the hit HBO Max series after the medical drama’s breakout first season.
“It was an absolute privilege to play Dr. Heather Collins in such a groundbreaking season and piece,” the actress posted on Instagram July 10. “Thank you to everyone who has watched & supported Season 1 & shared their stories with me.”
Liane Hentscher/HBO
Pedro Pascal, The Last of Us
While fans maybe should have been aware that the days were numbered for Pedro Pascal‘s Joel Miller, considering his April 2025 death was quite similar to how it unfoldedin The Last of Us Part II, the 2020 video game season two of The Last of Us is based on, the moment his character was brutally impaled still stunned.
Pascal, meanwhile, who also died onscreen in Game of Thrones andBuffy the Vampire Slayer, took his game over status in stride. “I get killed a lot,” he joked to Entertainment Weekly.”I like to die.”
Disney/Christopher Willard
Peter Krause, 9-1-1
After what he dubbed “one wild adventure,” Peter Krause officially extinguished his role as 9-1-1‘s Los Angeles Fire Department captain Bobby Nash on an April 2025 episode of the procedural drama.
“Bobby Nash was written in sacrifice, and he was built for this,” Krause wrote in a statement to theHollywood Reporter. “First responders risk their lives on the job so that others can see another day. His story arc honors them.”
Killing off the somewhat tormented, but beloved, firefighter was certainly a hot topic,showrunnerTim Minearacknowledged to Variety,”but after eight years, it just felt like, if we have any hope of creating stories going forward that have actual stakes, then someone’s got to die.”
Clifton Prescod/Bravo
Paige DeSorbo, Summer House
Summer just got a little less fun.
Paige DeSorbo announced in June 2025 that she was walking away from the Bravo series after seven seasons.
“You’ve seen me grow up over these last 7 summers. I’ll always be grateful for the memories, the community, and the opportunities this wild ride has brought me,” the Giggly Squad podcast cohost shared with fans on Instagram. “But like all good things (and some bad decisions), it’s time for this chapter to close.”
Netflix
Camille Razat, Emily in Paris
The French actress confirmed she would not return for the hit Netflix series’ fifth season in April 2025.
“After an incredible journey, I’ve made the decision to step away from Emily in Paris,” she wrote in an April 23Instagram post, alongside pictures of her and her former castmates on set. “It has been a truly wonderful experience, one filled with growth, creativity, and unforgettable memories.”
Katrina Marcinowski/HBO Max
Reneé Rapp, The Sex Lives of College Girls
Ahead of The Sex Lives of College Girls‘ third season, Reneé Rapp announced she would be leaving the Max series.
“College Girls moved me out to LA and introduced me to some of my favorite people,” she wrote on social media in July 2023. “2 and a half years later—it’s given me y’all and this community.”
Theshow’s co-creator Mindy Kaling also confirmed Rapp’s exit.”We love @reneerapp so much and of course will be so sad to say goodbye to Leighton Murray!” Kaling wrote on her Instagram Stories before referencing Rapp’s thriving music career. “We can’t wait to see our friend on tour!!”
Paramount Network
Kevin Costner, Yellowstone
More than a year after Kevin Costner was rumored to have unexpectedly walked away from the hit Paramount drama after four and a half seasons, he confirmed in June 2024 that he will not return to finish out the series’ fifth and final season.
ABC
Ellen Pompeo, Grey’s Anatomy
After 19 years as Meredith Grey, Ellen Pompeo scrubbed in for the last time as a series regular on the ABC drama in February 2023.
“I gotta mix it up a little bit,” Pompeo explained on The Drew Barrymore Show in December 2022, though she has already returned for a May guest appearance and continues narrating the series. “I’m 53, my brain is like scrambled eggs. I gotta do something new. You can’t do The New York Times crossword puzzle every single day.”
But she’s not gone for good. Pompeo still pops in and out of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.
Susie Allnutt/Netflix
Henry Cavill, The Witcher
Batman vs. Superman star Henry Cavillrevealed he would be stepping away from the Netflix fantasy drama after its third season—with the announcement that Liam Hemsworth will assume the role of Geralt for season four, and potentially beyond.
“My journey as Geralt of Rivia has been filled with both monsters and adventures,” Cavill wrote on Instagram in October 2022. “Alas, I will be laying down my medallion and my swords for Season 4.”
Matt Dinerstein/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images
Jesse Lee Soffer, Chicago P.D.
Original castmember Jesse Lee Soffer turned in his badge in 2022, saying goodbye to his beloved character Detective Jay Halstead role after 10 seasons.
“To create this hour drama week after week has been a labor of love by everyone who touches the show,” Soffer said in a statement after his final appearance in the NBC procedural’s Oct. 5 episode. “I will always be proud of my time as Det. Jay Halstead.”
JoJo Whilden/SHOWTIME
Damian Lewis, Billions
After five seasons,Damian Lewis departed Showtime’s Billions in Oct. 2021.
FOX via Getty Images
Emily VanCamp, The Resident
In Aug. 2021, it was reported thatEmily VanCamphung up herstethoscope for good as she had exited Fox’s The Resident.
Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for ReedPOP
Madeleine Mantock, Charmed
After three seasons of feeling Charmed, Madeleine Mantock, who played eldest sister Macy on the CW reboot, announced her exit ahead of season four in 2021. Calling the role “an immense privilege,” in a statement, the actress shared how much she “enjoyed working with our fantastic producers, creatives, cast and crew.”
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Arienne Mandi – Eva Imani on Chicago P.D.
Darren Barnet – Dr. John Frost on Chicago Med
Jocelyn Hudon -Paramedic Lyla Novak on Chicago Fire
