Chicago Med season 3: Nick Gehlfuss on the growth of Will Halstead

Chicago Med’s Will Halstead is moving forward and Nick Gehlfuss spoke to One Chicago Center about what’s next for Will in Chicago Med season 3.

When Chicago Med returns tonight, it’ll be with Will Halstead continuing to make some major strides and some important decisions, both inside and outside the ED.

Will has come a long way from who he was in the first season, and tonight he’ll face a tough challenge in his next case, while trying to help his now-girlfriend Dr. Natalie Manning.

One Chicago Center spoke to Nick Gehlfuss in advance of the episode to talk about what’s next for his character professionally and personally, and how much Will has grown this season.

The most obvious change for Will is that he’s now together with his longtime crush Natalie (Torrey DeVitto), but Nick pointed out it’s not just about them finally being together. The relationship also has professional ramifications as well.

More from One Chicago Center

“What’s interesting with what’s happening with Will this season is that is because he’s the attending, he has a lot more responsibility,” he explained. “He’s learned some lessons about allowing personal stuff to get in the way of his work and trying to save everybody.

“He’s also becoming less of the Will we’ve seen and Natalie’s sort of starting to take his place. The tables have turned there a little bit.

“That’s going to be very interesting in their relationship. Our star-crossed lovers are together, no doubt about it, and we’re going to see a lot more of what Will’s like in a relationship, which he’s completely devoted to. This is something he’s wanted for a very long time. But they work together, so this is the biggest hurdle for them in the relationship.”

We saw one example of personal and professional colliding in the most recent episode, and in the episode that airs tonight, Will may also have to rein in Natalie when another case hits a nerve.

“A reverend comes into med with what we think is his teenage daughter who is bleeding from her pelvic area,” Nick teased. “What we learn is it’s actually his wife. And he’s overbearing and refuses to let her speak on her own behalf, and it appears he doesn’t have her best interests at heart.

“So Natalie really takes offense to this and I don’t think Natalie and Will are in disagreement over this situation, even though the marriage is legal.”

Not only that, but Natalie also has her own problem, as she suffers a concussion while treating the victim of a drive-by shooting. So Will, who not only understands where she’s coming from but also is already worried about her, is in a precarious position because he can no longer just do whatever he feels is right.

“He’s got more than just himself at this point to be responsible over,” Nick explained. “Natalie is one of those people and it’s the beautiful chaos of working with somebody in the same environment. What we’re going to start seeing in Will and Natalie in the future is their ability to work together.

“And we’re going to learn some stuff about Natalie’s past that kind of conflicts with how Will is showing his love for her, and we’re going to see the relationship issues, as opposed to are they going to be together?”

Watch One Chicago on fuboTV: Watch over 67 live sports and entertainment channels with a 7-day FREE trial!

Fans could say that’s a bit of the pot calling the kettle black, since Will Halstead made his name on breaking rules and being an upstart throughout Chicago Med season 1. But in Chicago Med season 3, Will has to change the way he looks at medicine, no matter who’s involved.

“It’s one of those situations where you have to adhere to the hierarchy,” Nick told us. “Will in the past has gotten wrapped up in a lawsuit, and he’s probably still paying for that in more ways than just money-wise. He’s sort of on eggshells a lot of the time.

“Will’s a fighter so if he notices someone else willing to fight, I think he definitely appreciates that,” he continued, “but the writers have done a phenomenal job of putting him in a situation where he can’t be that guy anymore. It’s an extremely difficult situation to be in when you’re in love.

“I’m very happy with how the writers have been going after things this season especially with all the relationships. We really balance this stuff nicely with the work, and the biggest kudos to them is when they are able to make the relationships organically come out of the medicine that we’re working on,” he added. “They’re talking about the tension between providing care and the business side of the hospital, and insurance and all that, so I’m really pleased with what’s been going on.”

But what we’re about to see isn’t all about Manstead and Will’s personal life. For one, Chicago Med has a guest appearance tonight by phenomenal actor Jay O. Sanders, whom NBC viewers also saw as Kurt Weller’s father on Blindspot.

Here he portrays the reverend in question, and Nick praised his performance. “He plays this role so well,” he told us, “even though it’s probably going to be someone that everyone hates!”

CHICAGO MED — “Down By Law” Episode 310 — Pictured: NIck Gehlfuss as Will Halstead — (Photo by: Elizabeth Sisson/NBC) /

And just because Will isn’t in a position to cause havoc anymore, that doesn’t mean he’s pacified. Rather, he has to do some growing himself, to balance his instincts with the responsibilities of his new position.

“I don’t think Will has any lack of fight,” Nick said. “I think he’s just seeing things differently now because of his past…He’s going to continue to be tested, and you’ll see how he navigates that. Certain moments he’s feeling one way because of the relationship and things. We’re going to see things with him and his brother, and their sort of talking about relationship-type stuff. You will see some personal growth with him.”

Speaking of Jay Halstead, Nick concurred with Jesse Lee Soffer’s assessment that the Halstead brothers haven’t really been talking about Jay’s issues this season—yet, anyway.

“We come from this family where our father is pretty tough, and I’m not sure we’re really great at talking,” he told us. “We start seeing a little bit of Will and Jay interacting more. I think they’re really good at knowing when something’s bothering one another, but how deep they go with each other? We haven’t seen that, but we’re going to scratch the surface a little bit with that. I think it’s important to because that’s what families are for.”

At least one of Will Halstead’s relationships has vastly improved since Chicago Med season 1: he’s on much better terms with Dr. Connor Rhodes (Colin Donnell), with the two even working together on a case this season, and more collaboration to follow.

“They are totally chill,” Nick told us. “You’ll definitely see more of him working with Rhodes in upcoming episodes and whereas they may disagree on some things, it won’t flare up to what it did in the past. I think now they’ve come to the realization that first and foremost if you need somebody for the job and you know someone’s a great doctor, they both know each other is great at what they do.

“They are different doctors so they will have different outlooks on things, but they have an understanding at this point. I think the lack of understanding on both ends caused them to just have this machismo thing going on,” he continued. “It made complete sense and it was great while it lasted, but I do think that they’ve moved on beyond that. At the end of the day, they have the same goal.”

There is, however, one more relationship that Will Halstead will have to figure out: how he’s going to get along with Natalie’s son, Owen. That didn’t go quite so well recently, with Will getting hit in the end, but there’s room for growth and Nick told us what he enjoys about that part of the story, which again shows how far Will has come and where he might be going.

“We’re going to see a different side of Will,” he explained. “What is Will going to be like as a father? We’ve seen his father and we know that relationship.”

“I think the most obvious things are he’s overcome the god-like complex with his patients and he can’t save everybody. He realizes even though he had a specific experience with his mother and not being able to have treatment for his mother’s cancer at the time or a drug she was able to get on—that played into him trying to save everybody and I think he’s over that. It doesn’t lessen his need to want to save people’s lives but in those situations where he can’t, he’s able to accept that.

“Whereas in his father’s situation, we got a glimpse of what his dad was like and he was a tough guy. Not someone who shared his feelings and wasn’t very open I imagine. A blue-collar guy, very hard-working but kind of stubborn.”

“So I’m interested to see more opportunities that come with Owen. We’re seeing [Will’s] ability to show love for someone he truly loves, and you’ll see how that conflicts with Natalie’s experience of her relationships and her life and everything.

“This child that’s involved that’s not his, we’ve seen him just kind of accept it and I think that’s a beautiful thing on Will’s part. It’s not that he’s not trying to relate to the child, it’s just that he hasn’t had a good go of it. But I think his willingness to accept that this child isn’t his and be there and try to relate to him is a beautiful thing.”

And that just goes to show One Chicago fans just how far Dr. Will Halstead has grown since we were first introduced to him. Could we imagine the Will Halstead of season 1, who was fighting with his colleagues and almost getting fired, now in a position of authority while building a new relationship as a boyfriend and trying to bond with a child?

He’s not just doing what works in the moment; he’s trying to look toward the future, both in a personal and professional sense. Now that he has what he wanted—the woman he loves and a strong position at the hospital—it’s about what he does with those things, and he knows it. We want the best for him, and we look forward to seeing where Nick Gehlfuss takes him next, as the next chapter of Will Halstead’s story begins tonight.

Next: Here's where Chicago Med left off

Chicago Med returns tonight at 10 p.m. ET on NBC. For more news on Chicago Med season 3 and the entire series, follow the Chicago Med category at One Chicago Center.

Home/Nick Gehlfuss