Chicago P.D. featured Detective Alvin “Al” Olinsky as an important part of the show for its first five seasons.
Played by Canadian actor Elias Koteas, Al was close friends with Hank Voight (Jason Beghe), the leader of the Intelligence unit.
Together, the duo kept the rest of the team in line, providing veteran leadership that has been a bit lacking in recent years.
Al also spent a lot of time mentoring Officer Adam Ruzek (Patrick Flueger), teaching him the ins and outs of police work.
Not only was that a valuable way to make Ruzek a better cop, but it clued in the viewers to why certain things are done on the job.
There are now a lot of similarities from that relationship in the way that Ruzek is helping out new Intelligence member Dante Torres.
Voight’s son Justin is murdered
At the end of Chicago P.D. Season 3, Voight’s son Justin was linked to a crime and later found shot. Justin ended up dying in the hospital after Voight decided to take him off life support (he was brain-dead). That sent Voight into a rage.
Voight tracked down his son’s killer (Kevin Bingham) and ended up executing him after making the man dig his own grave. It showed just how far Voight was willing to go for his own brand of justice, but it also ended up having far-reaching consequences.
The death of Al Olinsky on Chicago P.D.
In Season 5 of Chicago P.D., the DNA of Al Olinsky was found on the body of Kevin Bingham (the murderer of Justin Voight). This led to Al getting arrested, and he refused to turn in Voight as the real perpetrator.
Al wound up in prison for the crime of murder, where he got stabbed by another inmate. Al made it to the hospital but died from his wounds, sending Voight on another rampage.
Voight killed the man that took out Al, but that didn’t alleviate the guilt that he felt about putting his friend in that position. This has been something that continues to hang over Voight.
New reference to Al Olinsky
During a new episode of Chicago P.D., references are going to get made to Al and what happened to him. What exactly will take place has been kept under wraps, but it will involve Voight visiting Al’s grave and having a moment of thought about everything that has gone down.
It would make a lot of Chicago P.D. fans happy if they brought back actor Elias Koteas, whether it is part of a flashback or due to him being in protective custody all this time. The episode where the character will be referenced is going to air for the first time on February 15, 2023.
The first five seasons of Chicago P.D. are also available for streaming on Peacock, where fans can go back and watch Alvin Olinsky at his best.
Chicago P.D. airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC.
bring back Elias Koteas