How Will ‘Chicago P.D.’ Write Out Jay Halstead in Season 10?

Jesse Lee Soffer as Jay Halstead in Chicago PD
Lori Allen/NBC

Will it be Upstead forever? Or does “forever” have an end date for the Chicago P.D. couple, with Jesse Lee Soffer (who has played Detective Jay Halstead since the beginning of the series, following his introduction on Fire) exiting and considering their line of work?

In August, Soffer announced he was leaving the NBC procedural in the fall, with an exact episode date for his departure not yet set. In his statement, he thanked the fans, his castmates, the producers, and crew and said, “To create this hour drama week after week has been a labor of love by everyone who touches the show. I will always be proud of my time as Det. Jay Halstead.”

So far nothing has been said that leaves the door open for him to return, which means that P.D. killing off Halstead could very well be in the cards. After all, it’s a dangerous job and he wouldn’t be the first member of Intelligence to be killed off, should things go that way. And just imagine how that would affect the unit, given that he’s been there since the beginning, he and his partner Detective Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) are married, and he and Voight (Jason Beghe) are close, despite their (multiple) conflicts over the years. Plus, that could reverberate throughout One Chicago, given his brother, Will (Nick Gehlfuss), is a doctor on Med.

But P.D. could easily have Jay switch units — maybe he and Voight butt heads one too many times — and therefore his and Upton’s marriage isn’t over just as quickly as it began. (They did elope just last season.) It’s hard to imagine P.D. having him leave town, at least permanently, given the Upstead of it (and Spiridakos did hashtag Upstead forever in her message about Soffer’s exit). After all, they’ve been in a good place since getting married.

Jesse Lee Soffer as Jay Halstead, Tracy Spiridakos as Hailey Upton in Chicago PD

Lori Allen/NBC

However Jay is written out, Intelligence will never be the same, given that P.D. will be losing the dynamic we’ve been used to since the beginning of the show. Who will call Voight out like Jay does? Who will be Upton’s partner in the field?

Chicago P.D., Season 10 Premiere, Wednesday, September 21, 10/9c, NBC