Why Did Hailey Upton Leave Chicago P.D.? The Door Is Open For Her to Join *Another* Dick Wolf Show
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Chicago P.D. just lost another beloved member of the Intelligence Unit. Tracy Spiridakos’ run as one of the CPD’s most memorable detectives came to end in the Season 11 finale, but why did Hailey Upton leave Chicago P.D. and how was the character written off? We have all the details below.
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NBC’s hit police procedural follows the personal and professional lives of officers and detectives at the fictional 21st District of the Chicago Police Department. Created by Dick Wolf, the series first premiered in 2014 and exists within the One Chicago franchise, which includes Chicago Fire, Chicago Med and the now-canceled Chicago Justice.
Spiridakos came on board in Season 4, starring as Detective Hailey Upton, a former robbery-homicide detective who joined the team as a replacement for Detective Erin Lindsay (Sophia Bush). Upton was best known for her relationship with Detective Jay Halstead (played by Jesse Lee Soffer). Midway through Season 10, Halstead left to go track down the cartel in Bolivia, consequently ending his and Upton’s marriage.
Nearly two years after Soffer’s exit, news broke that Spiridakos was leaving Chicago P.D. as well. She made her final appearance as Upton in the Season 11 finale. Keep reading to see how her character was written off and if fans will ever see Upton again.
Why did Hailey Upton leave Chicago P.D.?
In the nail-biting Season 11 finale, Sergeant Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) was kidnapped by a serial killer and nearly tortured to death. Luckily, Upton was able to find him ,and although she got shot in the process, both cops survived. After leaving the hospital, the two have a heartfelt conversation about Upton’s future.
“Am I bad for you?” Voight asked her, to which Upton replied: “What? Of course not. You are not bad for me. You didn’t mess me up, Voight. I came this way. It’s why I came, why I became a cop. I’m pretty sure I’ve just been remaking my childhood everyday making myself the victor… I don’t want to be stuck in my childhood. To be an adult stuck in some cage she made.” Voight then asked if Upton wanted to leave the Intelligence Unit and Upton explained that she didn’t want to leave him or the team.
“You can’t lose any of us, not even if you leave,” he assured her. “If you want better for you, if you want more, different, go get it. You won’t lose me, I got you. It’s not conditional.” As tears filled her eyes, Upton asked her mentor: “What if I don’t deserve more?” Voight confidently responded: “You do.”
The last scene showed Upton researching jobs at the FBI, FEMA and DEA before she packed up her apartment and took a taxi to the Chicago O’Hare Airport. Just before the credits rolled, the driver asked her: “Where are you headed?” Upton didn’t respond and instead smiled as she stared out the window. The scene also led fans to wonder whether Upton could cross over full time to Dick Wolf’s FBI franchise, which Soffer recently joined as a cast member on FBI: International
Shortly after the finale, Spiridakos and showrunner Gwen Sigan opened up about that final scene in an interview with Variety. “I have my own version of where she went and what she did, but we wanted that ending to represent hope, opportunity and possibility. And so, the more open-ended it was, the more you get that feeling,” Sigan said.
Spiridakos added: “I haven’t filled in the blank for her as to what that ending is or what the answer is to where she’s going on her way to the airport. What I really loved about this ending is that we finally get to see her be happy.” She continued, “We get to see her find herself and do something that’s for her. It’s something completely different than we’ve seen as far as departures go for characters and for her, she’s been through a lot. I love that it’s in a place where she just gets to discover herself and see what else is out there for her.”
The actress added that she was open to reprising her role again in the future, noting: “Yes, I would love that — that would be amazing. It would be a dream.”
Why did Tracy Spiridakos leave Chicago P.D.?
Why is Tracy Spiridakos leaving Chicago P.D.? Spiridakos told Variety in May 2024 that she left Chicago P.D. because she was ready to move on as an actor. She she informed Sigan of her decision at the end of Season 10. “I decided at the end of my sixth season, which is when I had reached out to Gwen and to everyone at Wolf to let them know that I just wanted to do one more year. I wanted us to send out the character with one last season,” Spiridakos said. “It was a hard decision — very, very hard. I love everybody on the show — cast, crew, producers, writers, everybody. It’s such an incredible team. I was just curious what was out there for me and wanted to switch it up, and that was it.”
Spiridakos also told Variety about what she’ll miss the most about Upton. “One of my favorite things about her is her vulnerability is her strength. For me, I’m not great at vulnerability. As an individual, I usually make awkward jokes,” she said. “So that’s something that I really love about her — that and how she is so much herself. She doesn’t care if you love her or if you don’t. Those are the two qualities that I hope have rubbed off on me a little bit, particularly the vulnerability.”
The actress’ reason for her exit is similar to Soffer’s, who told Variety shortly after he left that he wanted “more” as an actor. “I’ve thought so hard about how to answer this question — and there’s no good answer. Except I was ready for more,” he said. “Eventually, you know the character so well, there’s not much that can shift or transform.” He continued, “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. It was one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to make in my life.”
Considering Spiridakos and Soffer have been quietly dating off-screen for several years, it is also possible that Spiridakos did not want to do the show without her better half.
Chicago P.D. streams on Peacock.
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For more on Chicago P.D., check out Halstead and Upton’s relationship timeline.
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