What’s next for Natalie Manning in Chicago Med season 7?

Have we really seen the last of Natalie Manning on Chicago Med?

Torrey DeVitto, who’s played the pediatric specialist since the first season of One Chicago’s medical drama, announced her departure from the show well in advance of last week’s season finale. However, what happened in the June 2 finale has fans wondering what’s next for her character.

SPOILER ALERT: The rest of this article contains spoilers for the season 6 finale of Chicago Med. If you haven’t seen it yet, the finale is now streaming on Peacock.

“I Will Come To Save You” had Natalie horrified when her former husband-to-be Dr. Will Halstead (Nick Gehlfuss) was fired, after Will took the fall for Natalie’s theft of clinical trial medication that ultimately led to the trial being cancelled completely. Natalie chased after hospital administrator Sharon Goodwin (S. Epatha Merkerson) and begged her to give Will his job back, confessing that she was the guilty party.

However, the episode ended before Goodwin gave her reaction, leading to plenty of confusion among One Chicago fans about Natalie’s ultimate fate.

Is Natalie returning in Chicago Med season 7?

Right now, there’s been no official word about Torrey DeVitto returning to Chicago Med for the season 7 premiere. But it feels like she absolutely should—would the show really not give one of its original cast members an on-screen farewell?

DeVitto could be in a similar situation as Colin Donnell and Norma Kuhling, who had their exits announced ahead of time but then agreed to come back for the next season’s premiere in order to wrap up their storyline. The difference, of course, is that Donnell and Kuhling didn’t choose to leave; it’s possible DeVitto might not be interested in playing Natalie again, since she’s ready to move on to other roles.

But keep your eyes open over hiatus, because from a writers’ point of view, it would seem really weird if they didn’t want Dr. Manning to make one more appearance.

What will happen to Natalie on Chicago Med?

The one thing that was clear about Natalie’s plotline in the season finale is that she’ll end up losing her job at the hospital; she’ll wind up getting fired instead of Will, since she admitted to a fireable offense.

Whether or not we get more of an explanation than that depends on if we see Natalie in Chicago Med season 7 or not. Will she get fired off-screen and the writers will just throw in a line about her dismissal? Will we get the simplest explanation that she’s taking the time to care for her mother Carol, or get any kind of a hint about what she’s planning to do beyond that?

When Donnell’s character Dr. Connor Rhodes left, fans knew it was to take a job at the Mayo Clinic. It would be nice to have a similar idea of what’s in Natalie’s future, but considering what she did, it might be hard for her to get a job at another hospital. We’ll have to wait and see if she gets a full exit, or just disappears between seasons.

For the latest Chicago Med season 6 spoilers and news, plus more on the entire series, follow the Chicago Med category at One Chicago Center.