It's official. One Chicago is coming back for the 2025-26 season on NBC. The procedural franchise has been an anchor for the network for over a decade, and will continue to hold down the primetime slots on Wednesday nights. That said, there will be some changes made to the way each show in the franchise is structured. Particularly with regards to cast.
Deadline noted that budget cuts were made to Chicago Med, Chicago Fire and Chicago PD ahead of their renewal. Fans have already noticed that series regulars have been absent for 1-2 episodes over the last few seasons, but it now appears that the number will be increased in an attempt to cut costs. Now, according to Deadline, series regulars will miss 2-4 episodes in a given season.
One Chicago will be cutting down on cast appearances
To make matters even more interesting, series regulars have been asked by the network to take up residency in Illinois. Those who decide not to live in the same city in which the episodes are filmed will potentially see their episode absences increase past the 2-4 mark. This is new territory as far as the M.O. of the One Chicago franchise is concerned. Furthermore, actors who typically receive a raise of 5% annually will be asked to forego the raise in an effort to keep costs minimal.
One Chicago has been trending this way for a while. Cost cutting via cast absences was something that was introduced during the 2022-23 season, and has gradually become the norm, not only for the One Chicago franchise but for the Law and Order franchise as well. It's now commonplace for the 51 team to explain away the absence of a cast member with a few throwaway lines at the beginning of a Chicago Fire episode.
The franchise will also be producing shorter seasons
It's reassuring to know that Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, and Chicago PD are coming back for new seasons. Given the drastic measures being taken for all three shows, however, it will be interesting to see how much the franchise changes in the 2025-26 season. Especially considering that NBC is also considering making the overall episode counts for the upcoming seasons shorter than the 22 count seasons that will conclude on Wednesday, May 21.
We know that Daniel Kyri and Jake Lockett will not be coming back for season 14, and there are talks that other cast members will be axed ahead of the season premiere. All we can do is hope for the best and brave the future along with the characters who remain!
