Chicago PD season 7 character preview: Hailey Upton

What should happen

Hailey Upton has become something of a polarizing character in the Chicago PD fandom. There are a lot of fans who love her, and there are other fans who don’t like her. Both opinions are fair when one looks at how Upton has developed going into Chicago PD season 7.

She became the show’s most prominent female character, getting more screen time and more big scenes last season than original characters Kim Burgess or Trudy Platt. On top of that, the way we have seen Upton used could understandably rub some fans the wrong way, because she was put into situations where she was essentially replacing other characters.

First, she became the literal replacement for Erin Lindsay (Sophia Bush) in season 6 when she was teamed with Jay Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer). Then she psuedo-replaced Burgess when the writers decided to hook Upton up with Ruzek—a move that could come across as a double whammy with how they’d been teasing a Burzek reunion way before Upton came into the show.

So if there’s one big thing that needs to happen for Hailey Upton, it’s a story that’s uniquely her own. What does she offer to Intelligence, and to the show, that no one else does? Leave her out of any romantic relationship, don’t put her into someone else’s shoes, find something that feels like it only she could do it. She’s a good character, and Tracy Spiridakos has been a fantastic addition as an actress, but it still feels like we have yet to realize Upton’s full potential yet.