Jay Halstead's impending Chicago PD exit during season 10 ruins Hank Voight's secret plan for Intelligence. The One Chicago franchise is set to make its return this fall on NBC, and as Chicago PD kicks off its 10th year, the new season will mark the bittersweet final outing for Halstead as a member of the specialized police unit.
A month before it comes back on the air, news broke that Jesse Lee Soffer is exiting Chicago PD this coming fall. The actor is among the remaining original cast members who have consistently been on the police procedural since it premiered in 2014. Through the years, his character, Jay Halstead, has been working the streets of Chicago in an effort to make them safer. Beyond Chicago PD season 10, however, Intelligence will have to continue doing their good work without him.
Jesse Lee Soffer will undoubtedly leave a massive hole in the Chicago PD cast, but his character's exit will also have big ramifications on the show's storytelling. It effectively ruins the secret long-term plan for Intelligence. Until recently, despite years of working together, Halstead and Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) still sized up each other whenever dealing with anything more complicated than just locking up the bad guys. Halstead had been dubious of his boss in the past, and it didn't help that Voight opted to keep him out of the loop for more sensitive matters. This was, however, part of Voight's ploy to keep Halstead as clean as possible in preparation for him to eventually take over Intelligence. While there hasn't been any clear indication that this transition is already in the works, Voight has repeatedly mentioned that Halstead will ultimately inherit the team when the time comes for him to leave the force. Sadly, with Soffer's departure, Chicago PD can no longer make this a reality.
Why Jesse Lee Soffer Is Leaving Chicago PD & What It Means
Considering how long the One Chicago show has already been on the air, it isn't new to actors leaving. For starters, Sophia Bush left Chicago PD in season 4. Since then, the series has lost a few more original cast members. Jesse Lee Soffer's departure will be the first major exit since Jon Seda's Antonio Dawson left in Chicago PD season 6. Details about why Soffer is leaving are still unknown, although there have been comparisons to Kelli Giddish reportedly getting forced out of Law & Order: SVU. For now, both Soffer and Wolf Entertainment are mum about the reason for his exit. Suffice to say, losing Jay Halstead will mean big changes coming up in Intelligence. For starters, Halstead's new wife, Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) will effectively become Voight's right-hand person and will be poised to inherit the team in case the sergeant retires. Depending on how Halstead is written out, it will be interesting what the dynamic between his boss and new wife will be once he's gone. This is especially pertinent after Voight’s civilian informant Anna’s death in Chicago PD season 9 finale.
Unfortunately, Jesse Lee Soffer won't even finish Chicago PD season 10, as he is set to depart the show sometime in the fall. This only gives the police procedural a few episodes to wrap up his story satisfyingly. That includes establishing Halstead's relationship with Intelligence's newest recruit, Dante Torres (Benjamin Levy Aguilar), who was originally introduced as his mentee. More than that, there should be significant focus on Halstead's ties to Voight, Upton, and the rest of his long-time colleagues and friends before he permanently bids the 21st District goodbye.