Chicago PD star Jesse Lee Soffer has sparked a major reaction from his fans after reuniting with his former co-star and on-screen wife Tracy Spiridakos on the picket lines of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.
The actor, who left the show during its tenth season, took to Instagram with a selfie of him, Tracy and executive producer Derek Haas, which showed the trio holding up signs in support of the cause.
The 39-year-old wrote in the caption: "Team, assemble!!"
© Jesse Lee Soffer/InstagramFans rushed to the comments to express their delight over the reunion, with one person writing: "The band is back together!!!!" while another added: "YOU BROKE THE FANDOM WITH THIS."
A third person commented: "WE GOT A REUNION PIC AFTER ALL."
© NBCJesse, who played Jay Halstead in the drama, left the show back in 2022 when his character relocated to Bolivia with the Army for eight months.
On his decision to depart from the show, Jesse previously told Variety: "I really wanted to grow and expand, and we've only got this one trip. If I signed up again, it would have been for another three years.
"I would have turned 40 on the show. I thought, 'You know what? It's time to take a risk.' Eventually, you know the character so well, there's not much that can shift or transform," he continued.
© NBCThe actor later returned to the show to direct episode 16 of season ten, which aired in March. Chatting about stepping behind the camera in an exclusive interview with HELLO! earlier this year, he said: "It's a puzzle. You have this script which is your template, and then you've picked these locations and then you've had a tone meeting about how the scenes are supposed to come out, and how they're supposed to be played, so you're trying to put all these pieces together and take what's on the page and bring it to life."
Jesse's latest post comes after his former co-star LaRoyce Hawkins gave a disappointing update on series 11.
The actor, who plays Officer Kevin Atwater, confirmed that the upcoming season is likely to be delayed due to the writers' strike while speaking at an acting masterclass lecture at Louisiana State University recently.
© NBCMORE: Chicago Med cast speak out on future of show amid strike - details
MORE: Why these One Chicago stars left the franchise and where they are now
"Naturally, after the writers strike, it's going to take the writers a while to start warming up their rooms again and starting to conceptualize stories again," he explained. "So we might need like a three-week buffer."
However, the star is hopeful that filming will begin in the coming months once the strike is settled. "From my personal research, we have a big hill to climb before we can find an agreement," he said, according to Digital Spy. "I'm faithful and optimistic that it will only be a couple more months, if that, that we're off."
So, when can fans expect the series to return to screens?
While NBC usually broadcasts new episodes of One Chicago starting in September, the network recently announced some changes to its upcoming fall schedule.
No new seasons of Chicago PD, Chicago Fire or Chicago Med will air in the fall, with NBC broadcasting repeat episodes instead.
It's likely that new episodes of the franchise will arrive in 2024.
© NBC
