‘Chicago P.D.’ Boss Previews LaRoyce Hawkins’ Exit: ‘We Wanted to Give the Best Sendoff That We Could’

Meredith Jacobs October 6, 2026, 9:30 am

LaRoyce Hawkins as Officer Kevin Atwater — 'Chicago P.D.' Season 14 Premiere 'Demolition' — Lori Allen/NBC

What To Know

LaRoyce Hawkins will exit Chicago P.D. as Officer Kevin Atwater in an early episode of Season 14.
Showrunner Gwen Sigan teases his final episode and discusses former cast member Jesse Lee Soffer directing it.

Chicago P.D. is getting ready to say goodbye to one of its original cast members in an early Season 14 episode. The show returns on Wednesday, October 7, and an exact date for the exit has yet to be set, but this will be the last premiere with LaRoyce Hawkins playing Office Kevin Atwater.

“We really wanted to give the best sendoff that we could. Of course, you want it to be very natural for the character. You want it to feel organic. We wanted this to feel like something that hopefully isn’t just coming out of left field, that we could take little pieces that maybe were already embedded and just try our best to make it feel as real and authentic for him as possible,” showrunner Gwen Sigan tells TV Insider.

“And we knew we wanted to make it positive, make it optimistic for him, make it something that for his character could be a choice and that he could almost author it and we could bake it into the episode in a way that felt like, OK, we’re giving this character something that maybe he’s been longing for or wanting for a long time and hasn’t admitted to,” she continues. “And so it felt like we got there.”

LaRoyce Hawkins as Officer Kevin Atwater, , Marina Squerciati as Officer Kim Burgess — 'Chicago P.D.' Season 14 Premiere "Demolition"

Lori Allen/NBC

She also praises the work from Hawkins in this exit storyline and talks about having another original cast member who’s exited, Jesse Lee Soffer, return to direct it. (Soffer has directed since he left in Season 10 and returned onscreen last season for the three-show crossover with Med and Fire alongside Tracy Spiridakos.)

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“I’m very proud of the episode. I’m very proud of LaRoyce. I thought he did a fantastic job in it. His performance is wonderful,” says Sigan. “It felt really nice to have it be Jesse who directed it. So somebody from the family from the other side of it who still is able to be a part of the show in a different capacity. And so I think hopefully you can feel all of that on screen and the care and the attention that we put into it.”

How are you hoping that Chicago P.D. writes out Atwater? Let us know in the comments section below.

Chicago P.D., Season 14 Premiere, Wednesday, October 7, 10/9c, NBC