How ‘Chicago Med’ Just Said Goodbye to Nick Gehlfuss’ Will in Season 8 Finale

Meredith Jacobs May 24, 2023, 9:05 pm

Chicago Med

Does One Door Close and Another One Open?

Season 8 • Episode 22

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[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the Chicago Med Season 8 finale “Does One Door Close and Another One Open?”]

The promo for the Chicago Med Season 8 finale teased “someone will go,” but how?

Does Maggie (Marlyne Barrett) take a new job after meeting with a recruiter? Does Dean (Steven Weber) die before he can get the kidney he needs, from his son Sean (Luigi Sottile)? Does someone else decide it’s time to leave the hospital, because of the recent changes or another reason? The finale foreshadows all of these possibilities.

Just as Dayton (Sasha Roiz) is ready to show off what the new OR can do with his own hernia repair, Will (Nick Gehlfuss) and Grace (TV Carpio) discover the system created a lesion as a misguided attempt to help him with a patient who died. Dayton tries to brush off Marcel’s (Dominic Rains) concerns at first, then tells him he trusts him (and doesn’t need to see the scans as proof) and will figure out what to do about it.

But then Marcel finds out that Dayton plans to go through with the surgery, with or without him. Dayton does promise to sideline the platform until every bug is worked out after his IPO is launched, and not wanting him to have a novice operating on him who would trust possibly incorrect scans or recommendations, Marcel agrees to move forward with the surgery.

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Will tries to get Sharon (S. Epatha Merkerson) to intervene and stop the surgery, but there’s nothing she can do; it’s not life-threatening, so she can’t get a court order, and Dayton basically owns the hospital now so he can do what he wants. Will admits he can’t stand what the place has become.

During Dayton’s surgery, 2.0 insists that the bowel has been perforated, but Marcel shows those observing that’s not the case and instead proceeds without the system. Sharon has her eye on Will.

After, Will goes to her office and tells her that 2.0 isn’t ready to be on the market. Among its issues: in the wrong hands, data can be manipulated. “As you and your friend demonstrated,” Sharon notes. But Will insists it was all him, because he couldn’t risk 2.0 killing anyone else. She knows he couldn’t have pulled it off on his own. But he gives her his letter of resignation, explaining, “if Dayton comes looking for a culprit, you have one.”

“You realize I have no choice but to accept your resignation and I hope you also realize that I don’t want to,” Sharon tells him, warning, “It’s not going to be easy for you out there. I can’t give you a reference and Jack Dayton has been known to be vindictive.” Will’s not worried because, “where I grew up, everyone I knew is vindictive.” And with that, Sharon says her goodbye to him: “Will Halstead, what are we going to do without you? You have been a constant source of irritation and a constant source of inspiration. Your leaving will be a great loss to us. Great loss to me.”

George Burns Jr/NBC

Neither Grace nor Marcel are happy when they find out what Will did. “It had to be done,” Will insists, but reminds Marcel he’s still there so he can fix 2.0. The problem with that? Dayton says his IPO is dead and he’s ruined now, and while he’ll survive, he’s not sure about everyone else: He has no choice but to sell the hospital.

As the episode ends, Will empties his locker, which is when Maggie finds him. “I have to,” he tells her. He then addresses everyone in the ED with, “I’m sorry I have to say goodbye. This is not easy. You’ve been my family for so many years. I’ll never forget you. You’ll always be a part of me. And I’ll always be grateful for the time we had together.”

But that’s not all! He then goes to Seattle … where Natalie (Torrey DeVitto) is waiting for him at the airport! She comments on his lack of luggage. “I didn’t know how long you’d want me to stay,” he admits. “I’m never going to let you go,” she tells him.