Chicago Fire season 8 finale preview: Derek Haas on the season ender

Before the Chicago Fire season finale, showrunner Derek Haas dishes on the end of Chicago Fire season 8 and those unfilmed episodes.

It’s time for the Chicago Fire season 8 finale—which means One Chicago fans should hang on to something, because the series always delivers the most gangbusters finales possible. So what’s in store tonight?

Showrunner and co-creator Derek Haas joined One Chicago Center for another chat about the last episode of the season. Which character gets a great dramatic storyline this week? And where’s the not so serious, but equally entertaining, storyline?

Plus, Derek explained exactly how the coronavirus pandemic that shut down production in March has affected Chicago Fire creatively, and what it means for the episodes that the series did not get to film.

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The finale shines a spotlight on some of Firehouse 51’s great supporting characters, with some extra screen time for Randy Flagler as Capp. Not only will you see more of Capp, you’ll see him in a whole different light when he’s involved in the massive gas leak glimpsed in the promo.

“Randy is a pure joy to be around at all times. He’s a nut, but he’s our nut!” Derek laughed when we asked about featuring him in this episode.

“After eight seasons, we thought, let’s see a little more of Capp and where he’s living outside of the firehouse,” he added. “And it felt believable that we could knock him out in this episode, which would have the audience anxious.”

Fans already know that Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) will be on the warpath after that call. This season has been relatively stable for Severide, all things considered; yes, he’s been almost killed again, but nothing’s wrecked his relationship and he hasn’t torpedoed his career. So are we finally seeing a more mature Severide? Maybe—and maybe not.

“He’s been a very stable boyfriend,” Derek agreed before ominously adding, “Don’t count on that lasting forever.”

The Chicago Fire season 8 finale also includes another subplot for Blake Gallo and Darren Ritter, who have emerged as another double act at Firehouse 51 akin to Mouch and Herrmann. As Gallo navigates some relationship woes with little help from Ritter—or anyone else for that matter—how has Derek enjoyed writing for Alberto Rosende and Daniel Kyri?

“I think that’s a perfect characterization—hey’re Herrmann and Mouch from 25 years ago,” he agreed. “We have loved watching them emerge as the ‘young guns’ [and] we hope to continue that in season 9.”

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Speaking of season 9, one question on everyone’s minds is exactly how the coronavirus pandemic has affected the One Chicago franchise. Audiences know now that Fire is ending three episodes ahead of schedule, which would seem to rule out the show’s usual season finale cliffhanger. But we asked Derek if that’s actually the case, and what viewers should expect going forward.

“Well, we didn’t get to do the storylines we wanted to do to end the season,” he conceded. “So we’ll regroup and hopefully use it to our advantage to be able to start next season with a bang when we come back.”

For the latest Chicago Fire season 8 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Fire category at One Chicago Center.