Chicago Med will return for season 11 on October 1, but things will look different inside Gaffney Medical Center, as Marlyne Barrett, one of the show’s three remaining original stars, will be stepping back. The actress has played ER nurse Maggie Lockwood since the show’s 2015 launch, but HELLO! can confirm that she has decided to take a temporary leave from the NBC series for personal reasons and will not appear in season 11. It is believed that show bosses hope she will return to the series at a later date.
Marlyne is joined by S. Epatha Merkerson (Sharon Goodwin) and Oliver Platt (Dr Daniel Charles), as the only three actors still on the show after 10 years. S. Epatha and Oliver are both returning to the series after their options for the 2025-26 season were picked up.
Who is leaving Chicago Med?
Season 11 will also see the departure of John Earl Jenks and Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut, who have both exited the series. John starred as Dr. Dennis Washington for 12 episodes across seasons nine and ten; his last episode was the season ten finale. His character was written out as part of a budget-cut storyline. His love interest, Sharon Goodwin (S. Epatha Merkerson), the chief administrator of Gaffney, tried to renegotiate his deal, but he ultimately resigned.
Also leaving is Ashlei, who starred as Dr. Naomi Howard for 16 episodes across seasons nine and ten.
Chicago Med season 11
Episode one of season 11 will see the son of Chicago PD star Shawn Hatosy, Cassius Hatosy, appear as a 19-year-old patient. The first look image, published by TV Insider, sees him being treated by Dr. Daniel Charles (Oliver Platt). The character description reads: “19-year-old Hudson Collins, a patient who finds himself in Med for treatment of a badly injured leg as a result of a building collapse at an all-night rave”.
It’s unclear if Dr Charles just happens to be talking to Hudson, or if there is something else going on that requires the help of the Head of Psychiatry. The image shows Cassius in a hospital gown with bruising on his face and neck; he has a look of despair on his face as a concerned Dr Charles looks on.
© George Burns Jr/NBCWho is returning for Chicago Med season 11?
Season 11 will also, however, see the return of Nick Gehlfuss’ Dr Will Halstead. HELLO! confirmed that two years after leaving Chicago Med, Nick will be returning to screens with a guest role in season 11 after he left at the end of season eight to reconnect with his one true love, Dr Natalie Manning (Torrey DeVitto), who had left Chicago and settled in Seattle with her son.
His exit was specifically written so that there was scope for him to return, with Nick admitting at the time that part of the decision to leave boiled down to “how we exited Will”.
© George Burns Jr/NBC“I wanted that to be the case, but of course, I would have been okay with whatever the writers felt necessary for the story. So I’m glad that they preserve that possibility. They said outright, ‘You know, we’d be happy to have you come back whenever you want.’ And it’s really touching,” he said.
Also returning from season 10 are Steven Weber, Jessy Schram, Luke Mitchell, Sarah Ramos, and Darren Barnet.
Allen MacDonald took over as showrunner for the show’s milestone tenth season, and previously revealed that his plan for season 11 was “to take everything a step further but still be on the same path.”
“I told the writers that in every episode [of season 10], I want everyone to cry in every episode, and I want everybody to laugh in every episode,” he went on, confessing: “I want to continue that emotional torture for the audience as much as I possibly can, but take the characters in different directions.”
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