Chicago Fire finally hinted at how Taylor Kinney's Lieutenant Kelly Severide will be written out of the show ahead of his upcoming departure.
The final scene of Wednesday February 22's episode showed Kelly entering Molly's bar, where his wife Lieutenant Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) works, and sitting at the bar. As Stella approaches him, she says: "I got your message about Van Meter, what's going on?"
Captain Van Meter (played by Tom Hopper) is the head of Chicago Fire Department's Office of Fire Investigation, and he has been calling on Kelly to join his team for years.
Kelly showed Stella something to do with Van Meter
Without responding, Kelly showed her his phone and although viewers did not see what was on the phone, Stella looked up at Kelly and said: "Wow, what are you going to do?"
The teaser for next week does not reference Kelly or Van Meter but it seems like this is the way that the character will depart the show. Van Meter was last seen earlier in the season when Kelly was told by Commandar Pearce that the Captain was corrupt and had been covering up arsons. Kelly was not as sure though, and was later able to clear Van Meter.
Taylor confirmed in January he would be taking a leave of asence from the show in order to deal with an undisclosed personal matter. The cast and crew have been informed of Taylor's upcoming absence and scripts are being rewritten to reflect the changes.
Having starred in Chicago Fire since the very first episode aired in 2012, fans will no doubt notice the actor's absence in future episodes.
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Stella was shown something on Kelly's phone
A favorite on the show, viewers have grown particularly attached to the on-screen romance between Taylor's character Kelly and his wife Stella Kidd (played by Miranda).
The TV star's temporary departure marks another major change for the show, following Jesse Spencer's decision to leave the franchise.
Famed for playing Captain Matthew Casey in the firefighter drama between 2012 and 2021, the actor decided to leave Chicago Fire after almost ten years.
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