The Chicago Med cast will have a different look in the new season.
One of the primary stars left the show in the Season 8 finale, so at least one new face should arrive.
The exit by actor Nick Gehlfuss (he played Dr. Will Halstead) was unexpected.
The writers and producers did a great job at keeping Halstead’s last episode a surprise.
And having Torrey DeVitto return to play Natalie Manning again was the right call.
But the lack of Will and Torrey won’t be the only thing taking place when Chicago Med Season 9 begins.
A reduced episode count for the Chicago Med cast
The good news is that NBC has ordered 22 episodes for Chicago Med Season 9.
But the bad news is that the new contract was built to save the network some money.
Most of the Chicago Med stars have been contracted to appear in 18-20 episodes.
This means there will be a few episodes where characters are not on screen.
It’s easy for the writers to put in a throwaway line that explains a doctor is sick, working from home, or simply out of town.
But for fans tuning in each week, it might be frustrating to watch an episode or two where a favorite character has been benched.
The trade-off for the actors and actresses is that they don’t have to take a pay cut for the episodes they do appear in.
Looking ahead to more One Chicago content
Torrey DeVitto has been busy following her special appearance for the Chicago Med Season 8 finale.
Torrey and a Chicago P.D. cast member vacationed in Israel. And the duo shared pictures of them swimming in the Dead Sea.
Now that the long summer hiatus between seasons has begun, more vacation photos from the One Chicago stars will pop up online.
It’s also worrisome that the Writers Strike is dragging on in Hollywood.
Major networks have already begun postponing shows – like what CBS has done with Big Brother 25.
Chicago Med could also get postponed due to what is happening. That might mean a long break before new episodes debut.
Meanwhile, Chicago Fire has some huge cliffhangers that need to get addressed early in its new season.
To re-watch episodes from Chicago Med Season 8, everything is available for streaming on Peacock.
The streaming service also has episodes from Chicago Fire Season 11 and Chicago P.D. Season 10.
Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on NBC.