Severide fans might want to prepare themselves because it’s looking like we’re going to have to wait until Chicago Fire returns in March before we see Taylor Kinney back on our screens.
As One Chicago Center previously reported, Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD will be pulled from NBC’s schedule following their February 4 episodes to make room for NBC’s primetime coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics. This move will keep the shows off the air for the remainder of the month, with no new episodes coming in February following the Feb. 4 episodes.
We were already preparing to be without our favorite first responders for the weeks ahead, but it seems we might have already seen the last of Severide on the show before the One Chicago crossover event airs on March 4.
While not yet confirmed by NBC, it appears that Kinney will not be featured within season 14, episode 12, “Coming in Hot,” with newly revealed information hinting we won’t be seeing Severide appear within the final episode before the show’s break.
In a new interview with TV Insider, Joe Minoso revealed that Cruz will be stepping in as acting lieutenant of Squad 3 in the episode and will play a major role in the central storyline, which sees a member of the firehouse injured on a call.
“The fact that he’s in a leadership role on this call, he’s going to feel a deeper level of responsibility toward his men and everyone in the company because he has to make some of the tough calls. We haven’t really to see that aspect in Cruz’s sort of newfound leadership position yet,” Minoso teased of the episode.
In revealing this piece of information, Minoso seems to have inadvertently confirmed that Severide will be sidelined in the episode, which is supported by the fact that we do not see Kinney in any of the promotional materials for episode 12. After all, if Severide were present, there would be no need for Cruz to step in as acting lieutenant in episode 12.
We’re certainly excited to see Cruz taking on this leadership role within the episode and to see how he deals with the fallout of the injury. It’s always amazing when we get to see characters like Cruz step outside of their comfort zone and pushed in ways that challenge them to grow, and we’ll happily take more Cruz-centered storylines.
It’s just unfortunate that in order to get that storyline, the tradeoff is that Severide needs to be sidelined.
The good news is that we do expect Kinney to be back for the 2026 One Chicago Crossover event, as there have been no indications he will not appear in the crossover action. With the crossover set to kick off on Chicago Fire, we expect that the Firehouse 51 team will have a large role in the three-show crossover event, which will surround a missing passenger jet that unearths a bigger and deadlier mystery.
We should get additional information about the crossover on Wednesday night with NBC expected to drop our first look via the post-episode promos which will air after the night’s new Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD episodes.
This article was originally published on www.onechicagocenter.com as Taylor Kinney expected to miss final Chicago Fire episode before show is pulled for Olympics.
Let the countdown to the season finales of Chicago Fire season 14, Chicago Med season 11, and Chicago PD season 13 begin!
NBC has confirmed the current seasons of Chicago Fire, Med, and PD will come to an end before the final week of May, meaning the finales will air on or before Wednesday, May 20, 2026. The confirmation came inadvertently as NBC announced Brilliant Minds will return to the schedule on Wednesday, May 27, at 8/7c; this means that the One Chicago shows will have had to have already wrapped their seasons by that point in the month.
Honestly, this isn’t exactly a surprising window for the shows to wrap their current seasons, as NBC chose a similar window for the Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD finales in 2025. Last year, the One Chicago finales aired on Wednesday, May 21, which makes it seem incredibly likely that the Chicago Fire season 14, Chicago Med season 11, and Chicago PD season 13 finales will air on Wednesday, May 20, 2026.
There is always a chance that NBC could look to wrap the current seasons of Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD earlier in the month, but the network has historically kept the shows on as deep into May as possible.
Should the Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD season finales indeed air on Wednesday, May 20, this means that we’re likely going to have a few more breaks in the weeks ahead. May 20 is ten weeks out, and there are only seven more episodes left this season, which means we’re going to have at least a few breaks in the weeks ahead. We’ll have to wait to see if those breaks come in the form of nights of reruns or if there will be any additional weeks when the shows are off the schedule for event programming.
With April fast approaching, we expect NBC will confirm the finale dates for the One Chicago shows as well as the rest of its programming slate as the 2025-26 TV season draws to a close. We’re still waiting for renewal orders for Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD, but all signs point towards the One Chicago shows being renewed. Again, we’re just waiting for an official confirmation from NBC.
Now that the countdown to the finales has been set, One Chicago fans should be in for an eventful few weeks!
The One Chicago shows are known for hitting the gas as they enter the home stretch of the season, and we certainly don’t expect that to change. The episodes ahead are sure to begin laying the groundwork for the season finales, which we fully expect to bring about more than a few jaw-dropping moments with cliffhangers that will keep fans talking through the summer.
In addition to an amazing stretch of episodes, the upcoming weeks are also likely to bring about news on the next seasons. We’re expecting renewal announcements in the weeks ahead, and when those renewals come through, we’ll likely learn some key pieces of information about the next seasons. This includes potential casting changes, as it’s not uncommon for cast exits to be timed to or made shortly after the renewals.
One Chicago Center will continue to bring fans updates on Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, and Chicago PD, so be sure to check back for the latest news!
This article was originally published on www.onechicagocenter.com as NBC confirms Chicago Fire, Med, and PD finales will air before final week of May.