Chicago Fire first hit the screen in 2012, and soon became one of television’s most beloved shows. In its 11 seasons, the show has introduced audiences to plenty of complex, endearing, and heroic firefighters and paramedics.
Plenty of those people have come and gone — including fan-favorite characters — so it can be hard to remember who the original Firehouse 51 crew was composed of.
Here is everyone who was in the cast of Chicago Fire Season 1.
Who was in the original cast of Chicago Fire?
Of course, the show couldn’t exist without Firehouse 51’s fearless leader, Chief Wallace Boden (Eamonn Walker). Under him were Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) and Matthew Casey (Jesse Spencer), who were far from friendly with each other then.
Gabby Dawson (Monica Raymund), Leslie Shay (Lauren German), Christopher Herrmann (David Eigenberg), Brian “Otis” Zvonecek (Yuri Sardarov), Peter Mills (Charlie Barnett), Joe Cruz (Joe Minoso), Kevin Hadley (William Smillie), Harold Capp (Randy Flager), and Tony Ferraris (Anthony Ferraris) were also all a part of the firehouse that inaugural season.
The cast of Chicago Fire from the pilot episode pose in front of a fire truck
Teri Reeves as Hallie, David Eigenberg as Christopher Hermann, Charlie Barnett as Peter Mills, Lauren German as Leslie Shay, Monica Raymund as Gabriella Dawson, Taylor Kinney as Kelly Severide, Jesse Spencer as Matthew Casey, Eamonn Walker as Battalion Chief Walter Boden from the pilot episode of Chicago Fire. Photo: Sandro/NBC/Getty Images
Eamonn Walker as Chief Boden
Seasons 1-11
Wallace Boden (Eamonn Walke) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire.
Wallace Boden (Eamonn Walke) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire Season 11 Episode 19. Photo: Adrian S Burrows Sr/NBC
Chief Boden has been the frontman of Firehouse 51 for over 10 years, and his official title is Deputy District Chief. He’s faced plenty of struggles over the years, like making hard calls during intense fires and dealing with relationship and friendship drama among the crew.
Boden also had his fair share of romantic turmoil, between multiple ex-wives and his son, Terrance, and step-son, Jimmy.
Taylor Kinney as Kelly Severide
Seasons 1-11
Kelly Severide appears in Chicago Fire.
Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire, Season 1 Episode 1. Photo: Matt Dinerstein/NBCNBCU Photo Bank
The son of Boden’s old friend, Benny Severide (Treat Williams), Kelly Severide was a key player throughout all of Chicago Fire up until his mid-season departure in Season 11. In that season finale, Severide’s wife, Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) decided to track him down and bring him back to Chicago, so he may or may not return to his crucial role in 51 for Season 12.
When audiences first met Severide, he was battling intense pain that he feared would keep him away from his job. His best friend and confidant, Shay, was helping him get medication under the table, which caused some hiccups for the pair in the first season.
Jesse Spencer as Matthew Casey
Seasons 1-10
Jesse Spencer As Casey in Chicago Fire
Photo: Lori Allen/NBC
Much like Severide, Casey is one of the people who shaped Firehouse 51. Throughout his time on Chicago Fire, he proved himself to be a valuable leader, good friend, and loyal partner.
Casey’s long-lasting relationship with Dawson — and their potential co-parenting of their foster son, Louie — was a focal point of his earlier seasons on the show.
He went on to date Sylvie Brett (Kara Killmer), but ultimately had to leave her and Chicago behind to move to the west coast and care for the children of his late coworker, Andy Darden, in Season 10, Episode 5 (“Two Hundred”).
Luckily for fans of Casey, he’s reappeared throughout the last two seasons, visiting Chicago and his old 51 family regularly.
Monica Raymund as Gabby Dawson
Seasons 1-8
Gabby Dawson (Monica Raymund) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire.
Gabby Dawson (Monica Raymund) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire, Season 6 Episode 7. Photo: Elizabeth Morris/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank
Casey’s long-term partner, Gabby Dawson, was a force to be reckoned with during her time at 51. She began as a paramedic, and it was immediately clear that she was willing to put her life on the line for her patients.
As time went on, Dawson decided to pursue her goal of being a firefighter, where her bravery shined even brighter. She ultimately left the show in Season 6, Episode 23 (“The Grand Gesture”) so that she could be an emergency responder in Puerto Rico.
Like Casey, she returned back to the firehouse after her big goodbye, making a few appearances in Season 7. She also appeared in a video that Otis and Cruz found during Season 8, Episode 9 (“Best Friend Magic”).
Lauren German as Leslie Shay
Seasons 1-3
Leslie Shay (Lauren German) in a scene from Chicago Fire.
Leslie Shay (Lauren German) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire, Season 2 Episode 17. Photo: Elizabeth Morris/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank
Leslie Shay was a paramedic who worked alongside Dawson and was roommates with Severide. Throughout the first two seasons of the show, she went through the process of rekindling an old relationship with her ex-girlfriend, Clarice (Shiri Appleby) to the point that they were preparing to co-parent a child together, up until Clarice randomly left her.
Shay then tried to conceive a child and co-parent with Severide, but before they could take those steps, she was involved in a tragic accident.
At the end of Season 2, in Episode 22 (“Real Never Waits”), the entire crew responded to a fire in a large building that ended up exploding. At the beginning of Season 3, it was revealed that Shay was fatally injured from the explosion, and the team dedicated an ambulance to her in a tearful goodbye.
David Eigenberg as Christopher Herrmann
Seasons 1-11
Herrmann looking spent after fighting a fire
Photo: Adrian S Burrows Sr/NBC
Herrrmann is one of 51’s most lovable characters, and his paternal instincts stretch far beyond his large nuclear family. He is the proud owner of the popular watering hole, Molly’s, where One Chicago heroes gather to unwind.
Herrmann’s personal life includes his wife, Cindy (Robyn Coffin), who was diagnosed with lung cancer at the end of Season 11, and their five children. It’s unsure what Season 12 will hold for him with his wife’s health battle, but he’s overcome health scares before, like in Season 4 when he was stabbed by a perpetrator and had to be hospitalized.
Charlie Barnett as Peter Mills
Seasons 1-3
Peter Mills (Charlie Barnett) appears in Chicago Fire.
Peter Mills (Charlie Barnett) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire, Season 2 Episode 7. Photo: Elizabeth Morris/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank
Mills was the Firehouse’s new recruit at the beginning of Season 1, and he had to go through a great deal of hazing before he was formally welcomed into the fire family. Mills’s father had been a firefighter with the CFD alongside Cheif Boden, and much of the son’s storyline was piecing together his dad’s death and legacy.
Mills ultimately left the show at the end of Season 3.
Yuri Sardarov as Brian “Otis” Zvonecek
Seasons 1-8
Chicago Fire Otis Recap2
Photo: NBC
Otis was a central member of the Firehouse 51 family, and he spent the first season of the show invested in his podcast about the ins and outs of the job. Although his own coworkers poked fun at the creative endeavor, Otis later met with a firehouse in Morningside who were all massive fans of his work, so much so that he even considered leaving 51 to join them.
However, Otis realized that 51 felt too much like a family to ever leave, and he stayed on the squad until his tragic death at the end of Season 7.
Joe Minoso as Joe Cruz
Seasons 1-11
Joe Minoso in Chicago Fire
Photo: NBC
Where there was Otis, there’s Cruz. The second half of 51’s beloved BFF pairing spent much of the first season trying to help his brother, Leon, who was tied up with a local gang.
Cruz first found out the news when he showed up to a call about a shooting and found Leon injured in Season 1, Episode 7 (“Two Families”). He attempted to make a deal with the gang leader in order to help his brother, which ultimately ended in even more complications.
Christian Stolte as Randall “Mouch” McHolland
Seasons 1-11
Mouch on Chicago Fire
Mouch (Christian Stolte) appears in an episode of Chicago Fire Photo: NBC
The nickname “Mouch” is a portmanteau of “man” and “couch” — given to the firefighter because he spent so much time watching television — but there is much more to Randall McHolland than his love of TV. For instance, Mouch spent the first season attempting to learn Japanese so he could appease his online girlfriend, Mari.
RELATED: A Look at Mouch and Trudy Platt’s Chicago Fire Love Story
Once they broke up, Shay convinced him to try dating on the site GoldenOldeez.com, which didn’t work out well either. However, fans know that Mouch eventually ended up wooing Desk Sergeant Trudy Platt (Amy Morton) from Chicago P.D. in later seasons.
Teri Reeves as Hallie Thomas
Season 1
Hallie Thomas appears in a scene from Chicago Fire.
Hallie Thomas (Teri Reeves) appears in a scene from Chicago Fire, Season 1 Episode 21. Photo: Elizabeth Morris/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank
Though she was only on the show for the first season, Hallie Thomas (Teri Reeves) left a major mark, in part because of her relationship with Casey. The two had been engaged and were together for 8 years before Hallie left the countr
y. She returned to Chicago during Season 1 and told Casey that she was working at the Lakeshore Clinic, which posed an issue as he was pursuing Dawson.
RELATED: The Most Devastating Deaths on Chicago Fire Across All 11 Seasons
At the end of the season, the crew was called to tend to a fire in the clinic, and it was revealed that Hallie had been murdered just before the fire was started.
William Smillie as Kevin Hadley
Seasons 1-3
Ferraris, Hadley, Kelly Severide and Capp sit on a Fire Truck in Episode 121 of Chicago Fire
Anthony Ferraris as Ferraris, William Smillie as Hadley, Taylor Kinney as Kelly Severide, Randy Flagler as Capp in Episode 121 of Chicago Fire, “Retaliation Hit”. Photo: Elizabeth Morris/NBC/Getty Images
Hadley began the show as a normal member of Firehouse 51, but things quickly took a turn. The to-be-expected hazing of Mills ended up growing into something much worse under the reign of Hadley.
RELATED: The Biggest Villains from All 11 Chicago Fire Seasons
After taking things way too far, Hadley was transferred out of the firehouse. In Season 2, the team responded to a string of arson attacks that were later connected back to Hadley, who ended the show in jail with severe burn damage.
Randy Flager as Harold Capp
Seasons 1-11
Randy Flagler as Capp in his uniform in front of a fire truck on epsiode 318 of Chicago Fire
Randy Flagler as Capp on Episode 318 of Chicago Fire, “Forgiving, Relentless, Unconditional”. Photo: Elizabeth Morris/NBC/Getty Images
Although Capp is not often the star of major plot points, his place in Chicago Fire has stayed strong for all 11 seasons. Season 1 found Capp enmeshed in the normal Firehouse 51 shenanigans, and he assisted Hadley in some of the pranks pulled on Mills.
In Season 1, Episode 20 (“Ambition”), Capp’s dedication to his job became apparent when he got electrocuted during a call. He and Casey were attempting to deal with an electrical fire in a house when the incident occurred, but luckily he came back to consciousness quickly after they evacuated him from the building.
