How ‘Chicago P.D.’ Wrote Out Jesse Lee Soffer’s Jay Halstead — and Left Upstead
Spoiler Alert
[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Chicago P.D. Season 10 Episode 3 “A Good Man.”]
Heading into “A Good Man,” the promo had us thinking this would be the Chicago P.D. episode in which we’d be saying goodbye to Jesse Lee Soffer — who first appeared in One Chicago on Fire, before this series premiered — and his character, Detective Jay Halstead. And it turns out we were right.
As the episode begins, there’s an obvious distance between Jay and his partner and wife, Detective Hailey Upton (Tracy Spiridakos). While she’s home, he’s out, alone or with Sergeant Hank Voight (Jason Beghe). And while he’s out on a drive alone, he responds to a robbery at a pharmacy. There, he meets a fellow vet, Lenny, who insists on helping and is shot in the process. “Let’s do it again some time,” he says when Jay and Upton talk to him at the hospital.
It turns out that robbery is just one of a few; the men are looking for cold meds to use to cook meth. But the more Intelligence investigates, the more it becomes clear there’s more going on than they originally thought. They track down the owner of the getaway car, and he has a long rap sheet and is hooked to meth, but he sold his vehicle, he insists. After Jay makes a promise he can’t keep, he gives up the new owner’s name: Benjamin Watts, likely the guy who shot Lenny. However, after Upton looks into his transactions, she finds something worrying: two hours before the pharmacy robbery, Benjamin sent $400 to Lenny. She doesn’t think Lenny was just a good Samaritan but rather in on the robbery.
Lori Allen/NBC
Lenny admits he was the lookout, but he didn’t think anyone would get hurt. But when Jay and Upton try to get him to give up who hired him and show him Benjamin’s photo, he goes into cardiac arrest. After they leave his room, Upton wants to call Voight, but Jay refuses to let her. “He’s dying. We can’t take his name, too,” he argues. “One bad act doesn’t make you a bad person. You and I both know that.” That’s when Upton calls her husband out on his odd behavior lately, including lying to and pulling away from her. But she doesn’t get an answer to that from him, and after learning that Lenny died, Jay insists they need to make the case another way.
The only problem? Intelligence isn’t finding anything else. And then there’s another robbery, one that left two civilians dead. Still, Jay doesn’t want to do what Upton sees as “the right thing” and instead goes to Lenny’s. There, his friend Nolan shares he knew Lenny was in pain. “I know when people are in pain, sometimes they do things they might not otherwise do.” (Sound familiar?) When Lenny came home rough, he couldn’t hold down a job or pay the pills, so Nolan thinks he just got desperate. And so to keep Lenny’s name clean, Jay goes through his phone and computer, alone.
However, Upton and Voight follow Jay to a warehouse, and after they see Benjamin pull up, she goes in. But just as Jay finds Benjamin’s lab, the guy finds him — and in the ensuing fight, Jay loses his gun and Benjamin gets his hands around his throat. Fortunately, Jay has a knife, and he repeatedly stabs Benjamin, who dies. When Jay turns around, Upton’s standing there. When Voight joins them, he and Upton immediately come up with a cover story while Jay just stands there. “We’re doing it again,” he finally says, not handing over the knife. “What the hell am I doing?” Upton tells him he’s going to be OK.
The next time we see Jay, he goes to Chief O’Neil (Michael Gaston). to “tell the truth,” he says. But then O’Neil tells him all about how they’re going to make sure the Army knows about Lenny’s sacrifice and takes care of his family, as well as about the lives that have been saved by stopping Benjamin’s operation. Jay thanks him, then puts his badge on his desk. He’s resigning.
“You were right about me, I changed,” Jay tells Upton at home. She didn’t mean for him to resign, but “I had to. It was the right thing to do.” Now, he’s going to run a squad tracking down the worst cartels in Bolivia. “It’s black and white. It’s good and bad. It’s right and wrong. It’s no more of this. I need that. I need that back,” he explains. What’s worse? He flies out today. But “it’s not forever,” he promises. “It’s eight months, maybe a little longer, but I swear to you, that we’re going to get through this because you’re the love of my life. And if I’m yours-“ She interrupts him: “Of course you are.” And so, “then you’ll know that you have to let me go,” he says, and she agrees. He kisses her, then hugs her as she cries.
But Jay’s not getting away without a goodbye from Voight, at the airport. The sergeant would make sure he had any job he wanted in the department, but he knows the former detective doesn’t need him. “You’re past that. You don’t want to be me.” However, Jay corrects him: “No, it’s worse than that. I do. I do want to be you. But it’s like you’ve always told me: I’m not and I shouldn’t try.” And with that, Jay Halstead leaves Chicago.
What did you think of how P.D. wrote out Jay? Let us know in the comments below.
Chicago P.D., Wednesdays, 10/9c, NBC
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This was a great way for halstead to face his demons, and to keep the door open for jesse to return to the show if he chooses to come back some day in the future.
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Thank you. I wish people could see this, instead of just throwing a temper tantrum and reacting on emotion. The comparison to Brettsey doesn't even make sense. lol
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O
Terribly done. Jay goes from being ecstatically happy after his marriage to being a totally unhappy person in a couple of episodes. The manner of Jay's leaving was an insult to loyal viewers. Chicago P.D. has changed drastically since its beginning, and not for the better. Killing Olinsky, leaving beat cops out of the storyline, relegating Trudy to brief appearances (and losing her snarky attitude and hilarious comments), focusing too much on Upton, and adding characters that don't fit have all detracted from the show. Mishandling Jay's departure is just one more step in a long list of miscues.
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Omg...everything you just said. I have repeated. All of those changes, have stopped me from being avid watcher of every wk. I now watch sometimes. Unbelievable I say the exact same thing. I still wish olinsky was on the show....
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I am going to miss Jay too. The episode was done so well. I was so sad for his wife and Voight too. The acting was the best. They seemed to put their heart and soul in this episode. It just seemed so real, and when it does, you know they did a great job with the material.
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I think it’s terrible. I didn’t know he was leaving the show. If it’s about money they should’ve given him more to stay. Now what are they going to do with Haley his wife? Same thing happened on Chicago Fire when Sylvie was alone with a long distance relationship when Matt left. Then they broke up. BTW I think it’s terrible they killed off Violets BF last night.
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Jesse confirmed his exit in late August. There's a lot of chaos over at Comcast/NBCU/Wolf Entertainment these days. Unless he actually reveals what happened himself, it's unlikely we'll ever find out what happened. However, it was most likely contract renegotiations that fell apart, since Comcast cut NBCU's programming budget by $1 Billion. It's not as easy as "just pay him what he deserves," as much as I do agree with that.
This is not even remotely similar to Brettsey. I liked Brettsey too, but people need to stop making this comparison. It's not appropriate. Matt MOVED to Oregon for 3 years, and he wasn't married to Sylvie. They had JUST started dating. Jay and Hailey are MARRIED, and he's POSTED in Bolivia for 8 months. He's WORKING overseas, not living/moving there. I know people are upset, but they need to stop reacting emotionally and start thinking clearly.
Moving to another state for 3 years, and the military posting you overseas for 8 months are not the same thing. Hailey's literally in the same position millions of military wives are every year.
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I will miss Jay terribly, but his exit was well done and in character. For those who "only watch for Upstead," it might seem "OOC." But, it's really not. Those of us who paid attention to the WHOLE show last season saw him heading down this road. It wasn't exactly subtle.
Hailey tried to be Voight in seasons 7-8. The entire second half of season 9 built up Jay trying to be like Voight, because he was slowly cracking from trying to protect him from himself. His change in behavior didn't come "out of nowhere." If you missed it, then you weren't paying attention. Anyone who watches this show for their "ships" is going to miss important developments like this. They ignore what they don't like, and then act surprised when the storyline plays out exactly the way it's supposed to.
Jay's been my favorite from the start, tied with Voight. Hailey's my second favorite, although she's been getting on my nerves lately. But, I'm sick of shippers complaining about Jay being "OOC." Maybe, they should have paid attention to the WHOLE show instead of just Linstead/Upstead over the past ten seasons. Then, they would have seen this coming.
I expected Jay to leave Intelligence, quit the CPD or re-enlist in the Army to save his integrity. He did, which is completely in character. Jay's explanation that he needs the "black and white" moral code of the military makes sense. He's working overseas, not moving there. Upstead's still married. Stop whining.
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I’m so glad they didn’t kill him off hope he comes back
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I think Jay leaving CPD is a death sentence for the show. I’ve been a faithful fan of the Chicagos since they first aired but with all the departures on all of the Chicagos I’m really loosing interest because the replacements for the departed actors has been poorly handled. No strong appealing characters have replaced them. Plus story lines have lost the personal side of the characters. Things need to improve soon or Chicagos are done. Worst one of the three is Chicago med. if you want to get rid of any character get rid of Choi.
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I like the new guy, Torres. There's room for character development with him.
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Torres is great, but he's not enough to replace the loss of Halstead. Chicago P.D. will make it through season 10, but One Chicago's 3 year renewal expires this year. And with the state of affairs over at Comcast/NBCU, it's not a guarantee the franchise will be safe.
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Last night, I kicked back with a beer and watched the episode. At the end of the episode, I yelled at the TV and then I drank myself a fifth of Vodka. Straight Vodka. I'm afraid Hailey will join him in Bolivia. And then we'll be out Jay and Hailey both. I'm gonna need a lot more Vodka to get through the remainder of the season, with Jay gone and possibly Hailey gone.
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Sorry to see Jay leave, loved him and will be missed. I would have like to see him say goodbye to his team. He left so quickly. Glad they left it open to come back. They should start a spin off show with him the lead actor.
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Very poorly written it seemed rushed just put a means to an end!!! Hated it
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Big loss to the show.
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Great show and a good way to do it. Very believable
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Well, at least they didn't kill him off. Still extremely sad that he's going to be gone. Feel bad for the entire "team." It's just not going to be the same.
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Well Jay leaving like that gives a chance that he might come back instead of killing him off
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Jay,s wife will get a letter after his eight months is up saying he was killed in the line of duty,he is not coming back.that's why he resigned from chicagopd, end of his story
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Well have to say looks like Chicago P D will no longer be on my watch list
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Why do the good ones leave
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I'm going to miss Jay so I don't know if I can still watch it or not.
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I thought they did a great job with how they wrote Jay out. I know he probably won't be back ever, but at least they didn't kill him off. It was so sad but if you have watched how Jay and Hank's relationship has developed over the years, these actors really make it all seem real. it was a great show.
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Last night was a double whammy for us, we lost two good men. Chief Hawkins died. And then we lost Jay Halstead - on three (3) different shows. We lost Jay Halstead -- not only on Chicago PD, but on Chicago Fire and Chicago Med. A quadruple whammy. Here's what I say: I am going over to Molly's Bar tonight and I am going to have a fifth of Vodka. I can't take it. If anyone wants to join me at Molly's, tell Herrmann that I will buy everyone a round. I'm buyin'.
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I was getting sick of Jay. For those complaining about him leaving, not so sure it was the show's doing -methinks he might have gotten greedy and tried to hold The Chicago Franchise hostage over $$$$$$.
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At least they didn’t kill him off I hope in time he’ll be back to Hally and continue their lives together , love all three Chicago shows , thank you
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Yes
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R
Sorry to see him go. Bad move
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Jay is one badass dude. He was made for this. BE ALL YOU CAN BE. HOOAH!
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9 years of character development gone in one episode? A partner/lover/marriage relationship built throughout seasons and a blunt end within one episode? Come on, what was it? Contract dispute? Why no uproar as with Kelli Giddish departure at L&O?
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Fast four original members gone from the show what the hell
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He was a great member
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I hate Jay is leaving this is one of my favorite shows. The whole cast is great. Was it Jay's choice to leave or the shows. Please bring him back soon. What an empty spot he left in the show.
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Get over it he’s gone now
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Not only did we lose Jay last night, we lost Hailey's husband. And we also lost Chief Hawkins, he died last night in the Pickwick Theatre collapse. This was worse than a Shakespearian tragedy. Shakespeare couldn't have written anything this somber. I'm driving over to Molly's Bar tonight. I'm buyin, if anyone wants to join me. Tell Hermann that all the drinks are on me.
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I understand the way they had Jay exit. He needs to get back to his own way of thinking. Get the bad guys without the hype & cover-ups. Jay is all about the right way & the storyline was taking that away. Don't get me started on that whole marriage dealing. Lindsey was the love of his life! This was just a rebound relationship of sorts! Never liked the pairing of Jay & Hailey!!!!!
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I think it's gonna ruin the whole thing. Who else can bring the true spirit of police in Chicago? We will see... I am disapointed.
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The Chicago shows seem unable to find definitive endings for key characters.Halstead's departure leaves this open question about what happens either next or in "8 months maybe more".Does he returns? (not permanently obviously) Is he killed in "Bolivia"?Meanwhile we have yet another key Chicago character in a long distance relationship that we know can't be resolved.
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I think it SUCKS! Every one of the original characters seems like they're leaving!! What's going on? The 3 Chicago’s are doing well so if it's contract negotiations or more pay then let him have it. Jay really adds to the show.
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For me it was heart wrenching to watch, my heart broke for her,she loves him so much, tears ran down my cheeks as I watch them cry and hug but it's not good bye forever, glad they didn't kill him off..I think she will pine so much for him that she will join him over there.
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