Chicago P.D. is bringing back Jesse Lee Soffer, but it will be in a brand new role.
For years, Soffer starred on the One Chicago drama as Detective Jay Halstead, and that recently came to an end.
Soffer decided that it was time to walk away from the character, and that led to a very dramatic episode of Chicago P.D.
Since then, other members of the cast have said goodbye, as this was a decision that impacted the show in a huge way.
Halstead’s exit from Intelligence was felt in a big way on the last episode of Chicago P.D., where Detective Hailey Upton began spiraling. Losing her husband in this fashion has opened the door for Upton’s character to develop in a new way.
Now, though, we have the great news that Soffer isn’t done lending his talents to the hit NBC show.
Jesse Lee Soffer returns to Chicago P.D.
According to Variety, Soffer will serve as the director for Chicago P.D. Season 10, Episode 16. After appearing on the show as Jay Halstead for 189 episodes, Soffer will go behind the camera.
Since only five episodes of the current season have already aired, it’s clear that we likely won’t see Soffer’s directorial debut until early Spring 2023. When it does get close to debuting, it’s safe to assume that the network will start advertising the big night.
Could Jay Halstead return to Chicago P.D.?
It’s still possible that we haven’t seen the last of Jay Halstead on Chicago P.D. The writing left the door wide open for the character to return at some point down the road.
Since Halstead’s exit also didn’t provide viewers with a lot of closure, there could be ideas in the works to tie in his work with the Army into a case that Intelligence has to deal with. Maybe that could even lead to a surprise appearance in an unexpected fashion.
On the show, new recruit Dante Torres (played by Benjamin Levy Aguilar) has stepped into a full-time role with Intelligence, but it’s possible that another person gets added to the team a bit later. That was hinted at by someone in another unit who was speaking to Upton.
The Chicago P.D. cast also added a Yellowstone actor, as Jefferson White began playing Sean O’Neal on the October 19 episode. The son of Chief Patty O’Neal, Sean has a mysterious backstory that will play out during the upcoming weeks.
Chicago P.D. airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC.